The Pregnancy Chronicles: William
by laura-maeve
Summary: To be read AFTER the Ever After Series, otherwise you won't know some of the characters! And who wants that? Now, this is the story of Nessie's first pregnancy, how she handles it and her freaking out mate, Jacob Black. Some humor, some seriousness, and completely Volturi-free! So come check out how they handle parenthood! And peeks at our favorite couples from Ever After Series!
1. Chapter 1

**AHHHHH! I'm back! Holy cow! I know you guys have been waiting for this, or at least I hope so. I write for all those who have followed me or will follow me. Now, these stories are tricky for me. However, I have decided to write all the pregnancy stories(PS's for short) ****_before_**** the kids' stories. That way, we won't get confused, because I know I would have. I really hope you enjoy these. And any errors that I've made regarding pregnancy, I apologize for. I have never been pregnant, and I've done a little research but, as you know, shit happens and I get things wrong. **

***Disclaimer***

**Please Enjoy!**

* * *

><p><strong>January<strong>

**RPOV**

I was pretty sure that I was dying. One month pregnant, and I was ready to give up eating for the rest of my life. Except for the crackers and the blood. Carlisle had said that the morning sickness should die down in a few months, but not anytime soon. And at least I could keep something on my stomach. Our fridge was stocked with blood. Not as good as fresh, but it would do.

"Ness, baby, if it bothers you so much, stop. I can make my own food."

I shook my head, swallowing hard. "Not a chance. I am still your wife and fully functional. This baby just needs to quit being stubborn."

"Sounds like someone else I know," Jacob said dryly.

Over my shoulder, I tossed him a glare.

He held his hands up in surrender with a laugh. "I'm just sayin'. Cereal is perfectly fine with me."

"_Anyway,_" I said, completely ignoring what he'd just said. "You're going down to the shop today, right?"

He dropped the subject of me being a pain in the ass. "Right. I gotta tell Frank that we're expecting so he knows what's going on. But also he's letting me train Xavier there so I can get some work done and teach him."

I smiled. "You really like him, don't you?"

"He's a good kid. Kind of reminds me of myself at his age. Too much responsibility thrown on him. Plus, someone has to teach him to deal with women."

Snorting, I turned to look at him. "_You're _going to teach him about women?"

"Hey! I've learned a few things over the years. Just because I'm a one-woman man doesn't mean that you don't teach me things."

After putting everything on his plate, I set in front of him and kissed him. "Happy I can help."

Once he started digging in, I grabbed a package of crackers and poured a glass of blood. Sitting beside him, I threw my leg over his like always. His hand stroked my calf and shin as he ate, playing over the scars that I'd probably have the rest of my life.

"Are we still going to get the ultrasound after we eat?" I asked before taking a sip of blood.

"We can if you're feeling up to it. I told Xavier to meet me at the shop at around one, so we have time."

I grinned at him. Ever since I'd told him we were pregnant, he'd been doting on me, constantly asking if I was okay or if I needed anything. We still hadn't had our first ultrasound. Well, not one where I wasn't freaking out. Carlisle had barely been able to find the baby the first time because I'd only been about three weeks pregnant. Now, I was a month and a week according to the time line. Jacob and I were still kind of in disbelief that it was actually happening, and we wanted that moment of seeing our baby for the first time.

That first ultrasound, I hadn't watched. I couldn't. I'd been terrified that if I was pregnant something would be wrong seeing as how I'd been in a battle for my life against the Volturi and had gotten thrown around a week before taking the test. Besides, that had been to make sure that I was, indeed pregnant, that the home test hadn't lied to me. Seeing the baby without Jacob was just not an option for me.

"I think I'll be okay. Plenty of places to stop and throw up along the way. Besides," I said, stroking a hand up his arm, "we need this. We need to see the baby."

He lowered his fork. "I'm...surprisingly nervous about this."

Still stroking his arm, I smiled. "I know. Me, too. This is pretty big stuff. I kind of never thought it would happen to me, you know? This is one of those things that I always hoped for but figured that it was suited for other people."

Jacob squeezed my leg, comforting. "You're going to be a great mother, Ness. I've watched you with all the kids. They love you."

"Yeah but this is _my_ kid. It's kind of different."

Taking his hand off my leg, he reached across the table to squeeze my fingers. "I definitely know what you mean." Looking back down at his plate, he set his fork down, and wiped his mouth with a napkin. "I think my stomach is empathizing with yours."

That made me laugh. "Queasy?"

He nodded. "Oh yeah."

Smiling, I got up to clean out my glass and put up the crackers. My tummy was now happy...ish. Well, better than it was before. Unfortunately, they needed to rename morning sickness to all-day sickness, especially for me.

Behind me, Jacob's phone chimed.

"Carlisle said he's ready for us."

"Okay. I'm ready if you are."

We bundled up and headed out. Shelby, Seth, and Brayden met us at the head of the drive. The dirt road wound around the lake to stop at their cabin across the way. Seth, after having been killed in a fight saving Jacob's life and brought back by Shelby, looked better than he had in weeks. Shelby was a werewolf, a member of the Children of the Moon, an infected type of werewolf. The infection was called lycanthropy, and was what had brought Seth back when Shelby had mixed her blood with his. He'd been having difficulties dealing with the side-effects of the disease, and was learning how to cope with the help of Caden and Calahan, two alpha males who belonged to that type of werewolf.

Brayden was nearing three months old and was growing a little every day. He was sitting up on his own, and had even started trying to roll over. Shelby had sent me videos. I couldn't wait for my own memories.

"Hey," Shelby said, hefting Brayden in her arms. He was hanging onto her shoulder and looking around, wide-eyed at all the snow. "What are you guys up to?"

I shook Brayden's outstretched hand and made faces at him. He grinned and laughed up at me. "Hey, big boy," I said in a baby voice. "You like that snow, huh?"

"Oh, yeah," Seth said. "He loves it. Especially hitting me when it lands on my skin."

Jacob laughed. "Hey, the world's still new to him. At least he doesn't have much strength yet."

"That's true," Seth agreed. "So, where are you two headed?"

"Carlisle. We're getting our first ultrasound and a shot of reality," Jacob said. "Let me tell ya, I'm still having issues believing this."

Shelby and Seth shared a look and a smile.

"It's pretty powerful," Seth said. "I didn't really believe it either, even with all the symptoms, until I saw that ultrasound. Of course, it'll make more of an impact once the baby gets bigger and actually has shape to it instead of just a little speck."

Brayden reached for me, and Shelby let me take him. He had his little hat on with the points on each side. It had started to snow again, and he tilted his head back, squinting at the brightness of the clouds. When a flake landed on his pink nose, he sneezed. We all laughed.

Shelby walked over to adjust his hat. "So, in a month or so you can find out what it is. Are you going to or do you want to be surprised?"

Jake and I exchanged a look. He shrugged.

Laughing, I said, "I think we're just trying to wrap our heads around the fact that there's a baby at all. We'll probably decide when the time comes. But, personally? I'd like to know. It would be nice not to call my baby 'it' the entire pregnancy."

Jacob's brows pulled low as if he were thinking about it. And then he nodded. "Good point. I agree."

Seth laughed. "Decision made, then."

"Apparently. So what are the three of you up to today?" I asked, bouncing Brayden as we started walking down the drive.

"I'm on my way to meet up with Caden and Calahan," Seth said. He used to say that with shame, but after seeing our support, he realized that it was just a thing for him to do, a way to help himself. We were all proud of him that he'd admitted to a problem and was seeking help to get better.

"Brayden and I have a lunch date with my dad and Audrey. I think they're going to tell me that they're getting married. Which would surprise nobody. So, back to you," she said.

I rolled my eyes.

"Shut up. I'm excited," she said. "We're going to be moms together. Our babies are gonna be about the same age."

"Almost a year apart."

"I said 'about'. Anyways, what do you _think_ it's gonna be?"

Taking the question seriously, I thought about all those months ago when I kept having those weird dreams. The one about the kids kept popping up. The eldest had been a boy, then a girl, and I'd been pregnant with the third in the dream. And Cricket, Aunt Alice's actual niece, had said something about our "first born son".

With Brayden playing in my hair, I shrugged. "I don't know. I guess I've always had an image of a boy."

Jacob snorted. "That's what your mom said about you. Look how that turned out."

Turning to him, I punched his arm. Brayden giggled in my arms. "And aren't you glad she was wrong?"

Rubbing his arm, he gave me a look. "Well, yeah. That would have been awkward."

As I rolled my eyes again, Seth and Shelby laughed.

"What about you, Jake?" Seth asked, still laughin. "What do you think?"

He shrugged, but was thinking about it, clearly remembering the same things I had. "It could go either way, I guess. I don't really have a vision of it or anything."

Seth clapped him on the back. "You will once you see that ultrasound."

"Yeah," Shelby said, taking Brayden from me. "The one we're keeping you from."

To my surprise, we'd made it all the way down to the house. I'd been too busy thinking about Shelby's question to really pay attention. They said their goodbyes and took off in different directions in the woods. Looking up at the house, I breathed in deep. Jacob took my hand and in we went.

Surprisingly, the kitchen was quiet. Usually, Esme was in here cooking up a storm for the wolves that would stop by to check in. But it made sense that not many wolves came around. The patrols had died down, become relaxed, since the danger was over. Any patrols nearby would be heard by my dad, so there really was no need for them to stop in.

Mom was lounging on the couch, reading. Dad was on the piano for the first time in months, playing Mom's lullaby. Aunt Rose and Uncle Emmett were talking about another wedding. Aunt Rose wanted another, but Uncle Emmett was wondering why. Uncle Jasper was breaking in his new glass chess set with Trey, Cricket's boyfriend. Aunt Alice was channel surfing.

"Hey, baby," Mom said with a smile as we walked into the living room.

"Hey, Mom. It's quiet around here again."

"Sure is. I kind of miss the wolves coming and going."

Jacob chuckled. "I could arrange something, Bells. I'm sure they miss your and Esme's cooking."

She grinned at him. "You might just have to do that. We don't see them anymore."

"I'll see what I can do. Now, we," he said, putting his hands on my shoulders, "have an appointment with the doc."

"Oh, right. Ultrasound day," she said excitedly. "You'll have to show me the picture."

I gave her a look. "Mom, it's gonna be a speck."

Narrowing golden eyes at me, she said, "True, but it's my grandspeck, and I wanna see it."

Shaking my head, I rolled my eyes.

"Ah, my patients!"

We looked up to see my grandfather grinning down at us from the staircase.

Jacob looked back to Mom. "So, Bells, how does it feel knowing you're gonna be a grandmother at twenty-something?" A giant Jacob-y grin stretched his lips.

Mom threw something at him, which he ducked. "How does it feel knowing you're going to be a dad?"

He shuddered, but in a good way. I knew because I'd had quite a few of those. "Freaking weird."

Everybody laughed.

Carlisle grinned down at us. "What do you say we go get a glimpse at Baby Black?"

Okay, now excitement coursed through me. "Baby Black" was totally cute, and kind of made it more real to me. Reaching back, I gripped Jacob's hand and started pulling him toward the stairs.

He chuckled. "I take it the morning sickness and jitters have subsided."

"For now." I turned to look at him as we went up the steps. "Let's go see our baby!"

Carlisle was waiting for us at the door to the trauma room. "So you can still keep down the blood and crackers?" he asked as we walked in.

The machine was in the same spot it had been a couple weeks ago, and the band that was used to hear the heartbeat was still out.

After peeling off all my layers, I nodded and hopped up onto the bed. "Yeah, so far, so good."

Jacob stood to the side while Carlisle did his preliminary exam. When he was finished, Jacob said, "So, Ness is healthy, right?"

Carlisle smiled at him. "She's fine. Pulse is strong. From my tests of her blood, all her levels look good, strong. She can keep some nutrition down. Maybe we can start introducing light stuff to her diet." He looked at me. "But overall, you are one healthy momma."

Just hearing him call me that made me grin and tear up a little.

He smiled gently. "Now, let's check on baby, shall we?"

I laid back against the bed, rolling my shirt up. Jacob came to stand beside me while the machine was firing up and Carlisle put that cold goo on my stomach. I gripped Jacob's hand as Carlisle positioned the wand over my lower belly.

"Ready?"

We both nodded.

"Alright, this will be cold."

He spread the goo (I jumped at the cold) around on my belly, evening it out, eyes searching the screen as he did so. Last time, the baby had been on my lower left side, but Carlisle didn't stop when he hit the spot. Instead, he kept going, slowly, over everything else. It was so weird to see inside my own body like that. I'd seen pictures and stuff on tv with the machines, but this was a whole new ball game, especially knowing we were looking for something.

After a few minutes, I was starting to get worried.

And then, "Aha," he said just like he had the first time. "Sorry. Sometimes, it's hard to see the fetus so early in a pregnancy."

"Something's there?" Jacob asked.

Carlisle chuckled. "Yes. Your baby, Jacob."

He swallowed hard. "Where?"

Pointing to the screen at a small dot that I hadn't noticed, he said, "Right there. That is your baby."

Through my emotion, I laughed. "That's what's been getting me sick?"

Jacob cleared his throat, his own eyes glassy. "He's so small. How did he survive the fight?"

I smiled up at him. "'He'?"

"Guess Seth was right," he said smiling, still staring at the screen.

I laughed.

Carlisle grinned. "As I told Nessie before, her body is much more durable than a human's. And, if she remembers right, she didn't get hit in the vicinity of her stomach. Granted, the being thrown around could have caused a miscarriage, but I've heard the heartbeat myself. And the fact that she's still getting sick is a good sign."

"Can I hear it?"

"Of course. Let me print off a few copies of this little guy, and then we can get started."

I looked up at him while Carlisle went to work. "Jacob, you hear it all the time when you go to sleep with your ear to my stomach."

He met my gaze. "I know. I just want to hear it amplified, just to know."

"You can hear it when you're close to her?" Carlisle asked as he wrapped the band around me.

Jacob nodded. "I think so. But only when my ear is pressed to her stomach. Other than that, I don't know. I can't differentiate between hers and the baby's."

Nodding, Carlisle hooked up the machine and said, "I think that might be why we didn't know before this. Leila's heartbeat could be heard at three weeks according to Sam. Maybe, after this, you will be able to tell." He adjusted a few things. "Okay, ready?"

We nodded again. He pressed a button.

And then the room was filled with that fluttering sound.

Jacob positively melted.

Swallowing hard again, he asked, "How do you know that's the baby? And is it supposed to be that fast?"

Expecting the first question, my grandfather held up a finger and then readjusted the band, moving it up over my chest. The frantic fluttering was replaced by a deeper version of the same rhythm.

"Hear the difference?"

We both nodded.

"But you didn't do that before," I said.

He shook his head. "Didn't need to. I've been listening to your heart for as long as you've been alive. Once I heard the baby's heartbeat, I could tell the difference in the pitches." He looked to Jacob. "And to answer your second question, yes, it is supposed to be that fast, but I think you know that. You could hear Leila's heartbeat in Emily, right?

He nodded. "I wanna hear it again," Jacob said eagerly when Carlisle handed him the ultrasound picture. All he did was stare at it.

Once the band was moved back to my stomach, the pitch changed back to the higher one. Jacob just closed his eyes, and listened.

"My baby," he whispered.

Carlisle and I shared a grin. It was beautiful. I had a little piece of Jacob growing inside me. It was a magical thought. I'd always thought pregnancy was a special thing, to be able to grow something in your body. A life that took sustenance from your body in order to grow all that it needed to survive outside the womb. And now, I was part of it.

Jacob opened his eyes and looked down at me. Leaning over me, he pressed his lips to my forehead. "Thank you," he whispered. "Thank you so much for this."

Okay, now I started crying.

Stroking his face, I brought his lips to mine. "You're welcome. And thank _you_. We did it. We're starting our family."

Finally.

**JPOV**

I just couldn't believe it. I was hearing my child's heart beat from inside of Nessie, from where he grew. My brain had issues trusting my eyes and ears, but the photo was in my hands and the fluttering sound was still echoing in the room.

Seth had been right. One, it did seem more real now. Two, I had a gut feeling it was a boy. That this little speck was going to be my son.

_My son._

Two words I never thought I'd actually think or say. But there they were.

"Jacob? Are you okay?"

I looked down at my wife and remembered that I was one lucky bastard. She was beautiful as she stared up at me with both worry and utter joy.

Reaching forward, I brushed some of her hair out of her face. "Yeah. I'm very much okay. Seth was right, though. This makes it much more real. I now know how he feels."

She laughed, stroking her hand up my arm. "Yeah, I know what you mean." Holding her own picture up, she traced a fingertip over the spot that Carlisle had pointed out. "This tiny little dot is forcing me to upchuck every morning, all day. But I will happily deal with it."

Sinking down in the chair just behind me, I realized that Carlisle was so longer in the room. He'd left us to have a family moment.

"What are you thinking?" she asked quietly as our baby's heartbeat kept echoing in the room.

Swallowing hard, I looked down at my own copy. "I'm thinking that I'm scared to death. I mean, I am excited. Really, I am. It just feels like, in the story of our life, this is a whole new book rather than just a new chapter. New books mean more dangerous stuff. And I wasn't all that great at protecting you the first time around. Now, I'm going to have two to protect."

Close enough to reach out, she stroked my cheek with the backs of her fingers. "Oh, Jacob. You're right in one way. So many things could happen. But you're not the only one responsible for this child. I am, too. And that means that I need to do what you told me to do: remember that it's not just me. Protecting my baby is of the utmost importance to me. This changes the game, Jacob. Even after the baby's born, it wouldn't just be my life I'd be risking. All the bad things that have happened to me were not because you couldn't protect me. They happened because I didn't listen to you. I didn't take care of myself. But after what happened in December, and with this baby growing inside me, I understand how idiotic I was. When you promised me that you were going to be a better man, you meant it. And you are amazing. Now, it's my turn to be a better woman. I'm going to have a new title, and it's a title that _I_ have to learn to respect before I take it on when the baby gets here. You never put me in danger, ever. It was always me being stupid. Don't ever think that you can't protect us. I've never thought that. I know you can. Every decision you make is to protect me. I know that now. And I'm sorry that I let you down."

Leaning forward, I pressed a kiss to her forehead. This woman was amazing.

"Nessie, you made me proud on that field, facing Aro. And killing Jane. I will admit that I had my doubts, that maybe you've always been too well-sheltered. But the bravery you showed that day told me that I was wrong, that I had vastly underestimated you. I love you. And...I already love this baby. We'll raise him to be as brave as you, as smart as you."

She choked out a laugh through her tears. "You really think it's a boy, huh?"

I nodded. "Gut feeling and all that."

Her thumb stroked under my eye. "We should probably get Carlisle back in here."

Clearing my throat, I said, "Yeah. Probably." And then I called for him. "Doc, you can come back in. We're done being emotional."

He chuckled as he came back in almost immediately. "Babies make everyone emotional," he said as he took off the band around her stomach. "I think the next ultrasound can wait until March. Maybe by then, the baby will be big enough that we can decipher the sex. That is, if you want to know."

"We do," I said immediately.

Smiling, Ness nodded. "We do want to know."

"Excellent." He shut off all the machines. "Well, that's it for today. I'm very happy to announce a healthy baby and a healthy mother."

"And a freaking out dad," I muttered, still wanting to shiver whenever I called myself that.

Both Nessie and Carlisle laughed.

Ness squeezed my hand.

"Jacob, I'm confident that the freaking out will subside once you have some time to get used to the idea or until after the birth. Either way, you'll be phenomenal."

"Thanks." Even though I didn't feel it right now. I felt chaotic.

"So," Nessie said, rolling her shirt back down and sitting up, her legs hanging off the side of the bed. "Do we have a due date?"

"Ah, yes. You said you more than likely conceived the week after Thanksgiving?"

She nodded, taking my word for the feeling I'd had the morning we'd made love so slowly it had been painful. I'd felt something spark between us that morning, and was thoroughly convinced that that was the day we'd conceived.

"Then I will say the last week of August or the first week of September. Give or take."

When he said it like that, it seemed far far away. But just saying it in the number of months made it seem like it was next week.

A thought occurred to me, the counting reminding me of something. "Doc, any chance of the gestation speeding up like Shelby with Brayden?"

Carlisle gave me a look like I'd done something interesting. "That is an excellent question. I want to say that that is very unlikely to happen. Taking Emily's pregnancy for example. Leila was born nine months after conception. It doesn't seem like your kind of wolf has the same genetic code when it comes to pregnancy and gestation. I expect a full nine months with this child, though Nessie's vampire genes could kick in. However, if you feel the need, we can have an ultrasound every month. I wouldn't mind in the least."

"You think that would be a good idea?"

He shrugged. "It definitely wouldn't hurt."

Walking forward, I held my hand out. "Thanks, doc."

He took my hand. "My pleasure. Anything for family."

Family. That word had taken on a whole new meaning after today.

**TriciaPOV**

Mom and I both squealed over my ring. I'd narrowed my choices down to two and let Embry make the final decision. It was absolutely perfect. White gold band with a dip in it that looked like a mini ice-cream scoop had taken it out. In the center of it sat the diamond.

"Oh my god, it's gorgeous!" Mom squealed over my hand. Then she looked up at Embry. "You are a marvelous man."

He choked on air. "Uh, thanks. She picked it out, though."

"Did not. Well, kind of. I picked out the ones I really liked and narrowed them down to two. Embry made the last choice, so I was still surprised."

Mom grinned and sighed. "So, tell me."

I frowned. "Tell you what?"

"How he proposed, silly."

Embry and I shared a look. I grinned. "The usual. Flower petals, candles, pizza."

"Pizza?"

I couldn't help the snort as I laughed. "It's an inside type of thing, Mom."

"That means we don't want to know, June," Dad said from the living room.

She scowled at the door before turning back to me. "Is there a date yet?"

Again, he and I shared a look. "We were hoping for sometime this year. Maybe in the summer when it's a tad bit warmer out."

"You want it outside?" Now, she looked at me like I was crazy.

"Not necessarily. It's just Embry likes to be outside."

He smiled. "I'm perfectly okay with inside. Wherever she wants it. It's her day."

There was a loud _humph_ from the living room as Dad rustled the pages of the newspaper. I glared in the direction of the living room. Gritting my teeth, I gently pulled away from Mom to stomp into the living room. Standing in front of him, I crossed my arms over my stomach and tapped the toe of my shoe until he looked at me.

When he lowered the paper, I raised my eyebrows. "You could be a little more supportive, Dad. I'm excited. And I love Embry. I'm getting married. You can't stop that. So, please, try to get along with him. You don't have to like him, but at least be civil."

Watching me, he folded the paper and set it aside. "Tricia, I'm glad that you're happy. But don't you think it's moving fast? You just moved in with him two months ago, and now you're engaged, wanting to marry this year."

"Yeah, and?"

"You're not pregnant, are you?" he asked bluntly.

Gritting my teeth, I threw my hands in the air. "Doesn't matter if I am or not." When his eyes widened, I continued. "And no, I'm not. Not yet anyway. But if I were, I'd still marry him. I love him. There is never going to be anybody else for me. Period."

Behind me, Embry cleared his throat.

Dad rolled his eyes. I kicked his shin.

Embry came to stand beside me, his arm wrapping around my waist. "I think it's time I be perfectly clear," he said, tone telling Dad not to interrupt. "I am in love with your daughter. There will _never_ be another woman. Ever. And I don't appreciate the fact that you treat her like a child. She's not. If you would take the time to get to know your own daughter and see past the age, you'd find that she's incredibly smart, sweet, very independent, and in need of the proper affection. All of this, I have come to learn in the past few months of being with her. Things you should have known in the eighteen _years_ you've been her father. So don't tell me that we're moving too fast when I know her better than you ever could."

They just stared at each other for a long moment.

Embry continued. "I don't know why you don't like me. Frankly, I don't care. But you will not continue to disrespect her the way you have, treating her like she can't make her own decisions when she's told me that you raised your children to think for themselves."

Now Dad stood up, facing Embry. It was hard to hold back the smile because Embry towered over him.

"Are you threatening to keep my daughter from seeing us?" he demanded in a low voice.

Embry shook his head. "No. I'm telling you that every time you disrespect her in front of me, I'll remind you that if she stops coming to visit you, it's because of how _you_ treated her. I would never put chains, literally or metaphorically, on her to keep her from those she loves."

Beating back the smile that threatened to surface at the chains comment, I stepped into his body and nodded. "He's right, Dad. If I stop visiting you, it's because of you. Not Embry. Remember the holidays? We were civil and you two seemed to be getting along. Dad, you knew this was going to happen. Hell, Mom even kept asking when Embry was going to put a ring on my finger. He did it. You should be happy because you know that I'd never stay with a man who would hurt me. Embry is perfect. He always puts me first, even when it drives me crazy." Letting go of Embry, I walked up to my father and placed a hand on his arm. "Please, Daddy. I don't know why you don't like him, either. Maybe it's because you don't _want_ to like him. But no matter if you do or don't, I'm still marrying him. You can't change my mind."

He looked down at me and then back to Embry. "My daughter is safe in your hands?"

"Always."

The house was quiet as we all waited for what he'd say next. His jaw clenched and unclenched multiple time. Fists doing the same at his sides. He and Embry never broke eye contact as if they were having a silent conversation.

And then, blowing out a breath, he let go of some of the tension. "Alright. You have my blessing."

Squealing, I threw my arms around him, burying my face in his chest. "Thank you so much!" Pulling back I looked up at him. "You'll walk me down the aisle, right?"

A small smile played over his lips as he wrapped his arms around me. "Of course. Have you told your brother?"

"No, but I'm sure he's guessed."

Behind us, Mom sniffled. "Both my babies are getting married."

Turning, I smiled at Embry. He'd pulled my mom in for an awkward hug as she wiped at her eyes. Walker and Christa were working with Alice Cullen to round up a small wedding set for March. Nothing huge and definitely not all of the packs. Theirs was going to be outside, though. Christa insisted on it. No doubt all the wolves not seated with the guests would be in the woods, watching.

I really wanted ours outside as well, but Mom would want to help with the planning. Not sure how she'd feel about Alice, but I liked the pixie vampire and her tastes. I also knew that I wanted the wedding behind Embry's -our- house. There was more than enough land to pull it off. And Alice loved the idea.

Mom had also been helping Christa. The werewolf wanted to get along with her in-laws and did as much as she could to involve Mom in the planning, but had so far kept her from meeting Alice.

We chatted for a little while. Dad and Embry had gone outside to have man to man talk. Mom and I kept watching them. When they shook hands, without tension, I breathed a sigh of relief. Maybe, just maybe, I could get Dad to like Embry. But my soon-to-be husband also needed to calm his aggression. He always went into defensive mode when around my dad. That needed to stop if they were to get along.

But for now, that handshake gave me a little bit of hope.

"Trish?"

Looking up, I found Embry in the doorway.

"We gotta go, babe. I promised Jake I'd be at the shop today. He's training Xavier."

"Shop?" Dad asked.

"Mechanic down on the rez," Embry answered. "A bunch of us work there. The owner took us in as apprentices when we were younger. One of my good buddies, Jake, is the assistant manager now. Frank will probably pass the shop to him when he retires. We're trying to expand to a place up here in Forks. The shop here is just too expensive."

"Amen to that," Dad muttered.

Mom and smiled at each other. Finally. They were trying.

Embry held his hand out to me. I went over and took it.

"What are you going to do today?" Mom asked me.

"Well, I'm rearranging the house and we're getting new furniture. Everything is his mom's and she wants it back."

Dad frowned. "Where is she?"

"The Makah rez up north. That's where she's from," Embry said. "I was born here so this is my home. My dad was Quileute, and I have a half-brother down here."

Dad nodded. "Sounds reasonable." He looked at me. "Do you need someone to come stay with you while you get the furniture?"

I smiled at him, really touched that he was trying. "Yeah, sure. I'd love some company. You can help me move stuff around." I looked up at Embry. "Is that okay?"

He grinned down at me and kissed my forehead. "It's your house now, too, sweetie. Whatever you want."

"Great, let me get my jacket. I'll follow you down."

"Uh, Dad, we walked. We don't have a car."

"Oh," he said, slipping into his coat. "Well, I guess you can ride with me. But you should really look into a vehicle, especially with this weather."

Embry and I shared a look.

I shook my head. "Nah, we're good. It doesn't bother us. When kids get involved, we'll look into it. But for now, we're pretty okay."

Mom and Dad shared a look.

"Do Walker and Christa have a car?"

"Uh yeah. The Cullens are loaning them a truck."

"Cullens?"

Embry cleared his throat. "Yeah. Jacob is married into the family. We're all pretty close."

"Wow. Well, that's nice of them."

"Yeah, they're good people."

Dad grabbed his wallet and keys. "Shall we?"

We piled up in his SUV while Mom waved at us from the front door. Embry had Dad drop him off at the shop. After we kissed goodbye, I showed Dad how to get to Embry's -our-house. I was really going to have to work at saying that.

When he pulled into the drive, he whistled. "This is nice. Lot of land."

"Yeah. Embry's mom just left it to him when he refused to move back up with her. She's still paying for it as far as we know. She might be angry with him, but she still loves him enough to give him a home. She's living with a friend of hers, so she's not paying for another house."

"What about his dad?" he asked me as we got out of the car.

I shrugged, pulling the key out of my pocket. "Don't know where he is. Embry told me he was kind of a player. Who knows how many half brothers and sisters he has? But we do know about Sam, who is also Quileute. He lives on the other side of the rez with his wife and daughter. The guy took off before Embry was born so he never met him. Not sure he wants to either from the way Sam talks about him."

There was furniture on the spacious porch, making room inside for the new stuff coming in today. Embry and I had moved it out this morning. I got the front door open and escorted Dad inside.

He whistled again. "This is really nice. More space than I thought." His voice echoed on the bare hardwood floor. "How are you guys paying for the furniture?"

"Over the years, Embry saved up everything he ever got. Plus, the one good thing his dad did was open up a trust for him before he was born. There's quite a bit of money in there that he'd put into it. And credit cards." I patted his shoulder. "Don't worry, Dad. We're okay. And he's working at the shop. They make some good money, and we're putting a good chunk away."

Dad looked down at me, his hand coming up to pet my hair. "Your momma's right. You and Walker have gone and grown up on us. Baby, I'm sorry about how I've been with Embry. I just feel like there's something that you two aren't telling us."

Taking a deep breath, I gripped his hand. "That's because there is. But, it's not that we don't want to tell you. It's that we can't. And no, I'm still not pregnant. That, I would tell you. This is bigger than that. Maybe someday, we can tell you. But not until you and Embry start actually getting along."

He studied me for a moment. "Does this something have anything to do with how fast you two are moving?"

I nodded. "In a way, yes. He told you that he and Christa are different from...normal people. That's true. They are. There are a lot of people down on the rez that are like them. A...side effect of that difference helps to move relationships fast. Listen, Dad. I know you think that I'm just hormonal. I kind of am. I'm eighteen. But I'm not lost to it. I still listen to my brain. Both my brain and heart are in sync with this decision. Embry is the man I love. I'll never look at another man. Ever. And he does take incredible care of me. I know he's aggressive with you, and I'll talk to him about that. He probably doesn't even realize it." I hugged him. "But for me, please, Dad. He makes me happy and I want more than anything for you to get along. You have more in common than you think. Just talk to him."

Wrapping his arms around me, I felt his chin rest on top of my head. "He really means that much to you, doesn't he?"

I nodded. "He's my everything. And he knows my story. He won't abandon me like my birth parents because he knows what it's like to be left behind. He'd never do that to me, or any kids we may have. I trust him."

He took in a deep breath and sighed it out, hands rubbing up and down my back. "Okay, baby. Okay. The more I get to know Christa, the more I like her. Maybe Embry and I can work something out."

"Thank you," I whispered through the lump in my throat.

And then the doorbell rang.

Pulling away from him, I wiped at my eyes. "Furniture's here."

"Alright," he said, wrapping his arm around my shoulder. "Let's get this done, shall we?"

Grinning up at him, I went for the door. "I love you, Daddy. Thank you for helping."

"Anything for my little girl."

The rest of the day was spent exchanging all the furniture. The truck was set to take all the old stuff back up to Embry's mom. Dad and I spent the afternoon moving it all around trying to find the right places. Eventually, Mom came down with lasagna for when dinner rolled around, having asked for directions at the flower shop to get here. She helped us arrange the house.

When Embry came home, his eyebrows rose. He was greasy and sweaty, but helped out Dad as we tried to decide what look we liked the best. Mom and I stood off to the side telling them where to move everything.

They both muttered about women under their breath. Eventually, Mom and I took pity on them and made them stop. Embry went to take a quick shower before we all sat down to dinner.

For once, it was a civil affair. Dad started conversations with Embry about the house and work. Mom and I started talking about the wedding.

Over all, it was a good start to family time.

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><p><strong>Month numero uno! How do we feel about it? Please let me know. As I told one of my reviewers, I do read each and every review. Sometimes you guys say stuff that inspires me and you think I'm reading your mind! Nope! I'm taking inspiration from your thoughts, so <strong>**_please_**** review! They really are helpful! Love you guys! xoxoxoxoxo**


	2. Chapter 2

**Month number two! Woo hoo! Little baby bumps! I'm so excited! I am working ahead of the game to try to get this one finished, but remember, your reviews could help me out, so please don't forget to review. I take inspiration from your ideas. I read each and every one of them. I really hope you're enjoying this as much as I am. But just so you know, May and June are going to be skipped since they'll be a lot like April. But we'll get to that. Oh and...LEMON! in this chapter. :)**

***Disclaimer***

**Please Enjoy!**

* * *

><p><strong>February<strong>

**JPOV**

It was snowing again. Ness was laying on the couch, a blanket thrown over her legs, which were resting on my lap. I was watching tv while she read. Every now and then, her hand would rub circles on her growing belly. She was starting to show, a slight swell over the rise of her jeans, but not quite big enough to show through her shirt. Even I couldn't help but to reach over to rest my hand on her lower belly. She'd just smile and kept reading. Her hair was in a loose braid over her shoulder, her lower lip between her teeth. Every time she picked up a book, her expressions were priceless. She'd frown, grin, cry, and laugh. I loved seeing her like that.

Her eyes glanced up over the top of the book and stared at me questioningly. "What?" she asked, smiling.

"Huh?"

"You're staring at me. What is it?"

Shaking my head, I reached over to press my hand to her stomach. "What? I can't stare at my gorgeous, pregnant wife?"

She giggled. "I didn't say that."

My hand rubbed circles over her abdomen. "You're just...glowing. It's good to see you relaxed again."

She sighed happily. "The danger is gone. I'm not stressed anymore."

"Yeah, it's strange that I'm not running around trying to avoid a disaster. They don't even want me on patrols anymore, like that's beneath me."

Rubbing her foot on my stomach, I jumped when her cold toes touched my skin. I wrapped my hands around her foot and massaged, trying to get some warmth into it. When she sighed happily, I went for the other one.

"They're just trying to take care of you, Jake. Take care of us. You know what Adam told me the other day?"

"What?"

"That you and I saved the pack, the tribe, that we're practically royalty now. They're not letting Seth run either. None of the leaders are running. Only the pack members."

"I'm still a pack member."

She laughed. "But you're the alpha, the leader. Adam said that what we did saved their lives so they owe us. We're not allowed to work. Just take it easy."

I rolled my eyes. "They're crazy."

Laughing again, she rubbed a hand up my arm. "Now you know how I feel whenever you don't let me do anything because you want to take care of me. Just let them take care of you. Otherwise, they'd feel like they haven't repaid a debt."

I dug my thumb into the arch of her foot. She moaned. "They don't owe me anything. They're my wolves. I'm supposed to do things like that."

"Tell that to the whole pack. Even Walker's pack isn't letting him do anything. He's trying to help them build on Roderick's land and they won't let him do anything unless he orders it."

"How's that going, by the way?"

Now, she was always on the phone with the other females, laughing and chit-chatting. It had become a gossip fest over the phone lines.

Shrugging, she adjusted her position and stretched her back. "According to Christa, it's going well. Already they have three huge cabins built. They're bigger than ours, and can room like five or six couples. More like community housing. But for a hundred or so wolves, that 's not too bad." Digging in her pocket, she pulled out her phone. "She sent me pictures."

She pulled them up and handed the phone over to me. I flipped through them. "That's a lot of land. And, geez, you're right. Those things are huge."

"Mhm," she said, nodding. "Apparently, their kind of wolf is more...I don't know, nature-y? I guess. They need to run and exert some energy to keep from shifting. They really are very different from you and your pack."

I handed the phone back to her. "I'm glad I don't have to deal with that. We got lucky."

She nodded, absently playing her fingers over her stomach. "Any word on Seth?"

Now that I was strange topic. Not being able to stop touching her, I rubbed my hands over her legs under the blanket. Her toes had gone back under my shirt.

"I don't know. He seems almost back to normal. Every now and then he needs a minute. Caden says that his genetic-wolf is fighting with the infection-wolf. It's like, they're fighting inside of him, trying to take over. His genetic wolf is winning because it's more closely tied to his blood and everything that makes up is body. He phased with Shelby and said that that helped. Apparently, the phasing is still the same since it's his genetic-wolf. Caden thinks that if the infection-wolf were to surface, the phasing would be painful. Maybe not as slow as the Children of the Moon, but still painful. Neither Caden nor Calahan have ever dealt with something like this, so they're just trying to help him keep the two separated in his head. It's when they start to fight that he has issues. But they're getting few and far between."

"That's really good. Shelby says that being around Brayden helps him out a lot. And being near her. Adam and Caden thinks it has something to do with the pull of the imprint. It's pulling at his genetic-wolf to stay at the surface."

I nodded. "That would make sense. I know that you would help focus me if it was me. And it very well could have been me. I just don't know how to pay him back for that."

Putting her book on the table, she moved so that she was cuddled up next to me. "All you can really do is be supportive. Remind him of who he is. Be there for Shelby and Brayden if they need someone when Seth's not available. We just need to look after his family."

I gave her a look. "We're starting our own family."

"This is true. But I'm fine. And we both owe Seth for what he did. It's the least we could do. Shelby's like my sister anyway. Consider her your sister-in-law. I'd do the same for Becca or Rachel. And so would you. They're your sisters. You even told Shelby that she was like a sister to you. This is how we repay them." She shrugged, reaching for the book once more and scooted back again to lean against the arm of the couch. "That's just how it is."

Essentially, she'd just told me I was being a selfish ass. "Yeah, you're right. Seth won't tell me if they need something, so you gotta let me know if Shelby says anything, okay?"

Ness grinned at me over the book. "Of course."

Before I could turn the mute off on the tv, her stomach rumbled. We both looked at each other, eyebrows raised in amusement. Laughing, she put a hand to her stomach.

"Baby's not hungry, is he?" I asked, chuckling.

"I think he is."

"Blood or crackers?" I asked as I stood up, putting her legs on the couch.

Frowning, she rubbed her growling stomach. "Hmmm, you know what sounds good?"

"What?"

"Those blackberries in the fridge. They smelled amazing earlier."

I raised my eyebrows again. "Blackberries?"

She nodded, a blissful look on her face as if she were already tasting them.

"You think you can handle them?"

Another shrug. "We have to try. I can't survive on just crackers and blood. And they sound so good. I don't feel queasy thinking about them."

"Alright." I went for the kitchen ans grabbed the container out of the fridge. After washing them off as best I could, I grabbed a bottle of water and took them to her. "Blackberries and water it is."

Luckily there was a trashcan next to her. I watched intently as she opened the container and popped one of the plump berries in her mouth. She chewed experimentally at first, and then closed her eyes, smiling.

"Mmm, so good."

I relaxed a little. I'd still be a little tense until she held them down for over an hour. I felt so helpless when the sickness took over and she couldn't stop heaving until everything was out of her system. Even the water. But for the past few days, she'd been able to hold the water down, which was good. She needed to stay hydrated.

Waving a hand at me, she swallowed and said, "Watch tv. It'll be a while before I start throwing up, if I do."

It was remarkable to think that some men left their pregnant women to deal with this stuff alone. I could never leave Ness to deal with being pregnant with my child on her own. Who else would take care of her if I didn't? I had a responsibility to her and my unborn child. How did men ignore that?

She went back to reading her book, popping the berries into her mouth, and wiggling her feet in my lap.

Happy was a good look on her.

**TriciaPOV**

"June or July?"

"What?"

"When do you want the wedding? June or July?"

Embry muted the tv and looked over at me. I was sitting on the floor between the couch and the coffee table, messing around on my laptop. There was no need to shop for dresses because Alice had promised me she'd make it, but I was still going over styles and trying to piece something together.

Leaning forward, Embry looked over the table and my spread of pictures and notes. "Baby, I don't care. Whichever you want."

I growled, which wasn't nearly as impressive as his, but still got my point across. "Seriously, which do you want? Which sounds better as an anniversary date? I really want your input."

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him scratch his chin, really thinking about it. "June would be easier to remember because that's your mom's name. But it is closer to your brother's wedding."

I snorted. "Please, he's already married. And you know full well he's going to have to tell Mom and Dad, or he's going to be celebrating two anniversaries. I don't see why they don't just move the wedding to November, their actual wedding month."

"Maybe they didn't think of that. You should mention it."

"Yeah, but I don't want my wedding before my brother's."

"But like you said, he's already married. We can always push ours back."

Throwing my pen down on the table, I blew out a breath and scrubbed my face. "Ugh. I don't want to push it back. I want to be your wife, dammit."

Chuckling, he reached down, gripped my wrist, and urged me up. He pulled me down on his lap so that I was straddling his legs. His hand came up to brush my bangs back behind my ear. "You will be my wife. In the animal world, you're already my mate. We cemented that the first time I made love to you. I want more than anything to watch you walk down an aisle in your wedding dress, smiling at me. I want that so bad I can already dream about it. But it's not a race, Tricia. Just slow it down a bit. We'll make it. I promise."

His hands moved up over my ribcage. One hand went up to the pen that was holding my hair up and took it out, shook out my hair. It cascaded down to my elbows.

"That's better," he said.

Smiling, I rolled my eyes.

"You okay?"

I nodded. "Yeah. I just don't want to hurt Mom and Dad. Dad knows something is off about us, but I told him that we couldn't tell him what. At least not until you and him learn to get along. Speaking of which," I punched his shoulder, which didn't faze him at all, "stop antagonizing him."

His eyes widened. "I didn't do anything."

"Yes, you did. Every time we go up there, you get defensive and a bad attitude. I know you told me you'd try to get along with him, but so far I'm still playing referee. And I don't appreciate it." When he just stared at me, I said, "I know you want to protect me, and make him respect me. But that's not going to happen when he thinks that that attitude is what I live with. You need to show him how good you are, not how tough you are. Just have a normal conversation with him. Christa's trying and she's getting along with him better. You have more in common with him than you think. I don't want to be that couple where we don't get along with our in-laws." Thinking about that, I amended myself. "Well, I'd probably punch your dad if he ever came back; and I know I wouldn't get along with your mom for leaving you, but still. I get along with my parents and I want you to as well."

His fingers played in my hair, spreading it over my shoulder. "I didn't really know I was that bad."

Grinning, I traced his cheekbones with my thumbs. "I actually thought about that. It's your nature." I shrugged. "In wolf packs, the dominant males are just naturally aggressive and very protective of their females. Their females help keep them in line, though."

He laughed. God, I loved that sound.

Big hands gripped my hips. "Well, I'm glad you said something. I promise to really try."

"Good." Leaning forward, I kissed him. "I love you."

"And I love you," he said against my mouth, and then deepened the kiss.

His tongue slid along my lips, seeking entry. I opened enough for him to slip inside. He took that as invitation and invaded me, tasted me. Those strong arms wrapped around my body and pulled me closer. My fingers slid over his neck and into his hair. A purr echoed up from his chest, vibrating against my breasts and up into my mouth. Fingers searching, I finally found the buttons to his shirt and started undoing them. He wasn't wearing a tank underneath so smooth skin was revealed.

Putting his hand under my butt, he hefted me up, broke the kiss, and shoved his face into my cleavage that showed above my tank top, teeth nipping at my skin.

Laughing, I tugged on his hair to pull him back up. "I have stuff to do. I gotta call Christa. We can finish this later."

Growling, he pulled back. "You just like making me wait."

Hopping off his lap and back onto the floor, I reached for my phone even though my body was screaming for his hands on my skin. "Anticipation makes everything better."

As I wrapped my hair back up and stuck it with a pen, he grumbled. "You really are the devil, aren't you?"

I just shrugged. "Only for you," I said, turning to wink at him as the phone rang.

"Hey, Tricia. What's up?" Christa said as the phone clicked

"Hey, nothing much. Just going over wedding stuff."

Christa laughed. "If I have to look an one more ruffle, I'm gonna puke."

"I know what you mean. But, hey, I was thinking about something while trying to figure out my and Embry's wedding date."

A noise told me she was probably moving around. And then her voice sounded far away. "Haleigh, Daddy told you no tv today. That means no movies. Go color or play outside." I grinned as she came back on with me. "Sorry. She's all about her Disney movies. I'm trying to get the stuff to start home-schooling her."

"That's alright. It's cute. So, Walker is really Daddy now, huh?"

She chuckled. "Oh yeah. And he takes it seriously. Not that he shouldn't. I just find it cute, too. He rolls his eyes every time I say that. So what were you thinking about?"

Laughing, I said, "Um, well, I was thinking about my parents. Well, uh..."

"Tricia, honey, just spit it out."

Taking a deep breath, I went for it. "Well, if you have your wedding in March, you and Walker are going to have to remember two anniversary dates. You were married back in November. Unless you tell Mom and Dad that you were married, they'll be celebrating the March date, not the November one."

Silence, and then something clanged. "Wow, I didn't even think about that. Holy crap. You're right." Something like a door opening and closing floated over the phone.

"Who's right about what?" I heard my brother ask clearly. He must have come up to hug Christa or something.

"Your sister. We can't have our wedding in March when we were actually married in November. I can't handle two anniversary dates."

There was movement on the phone and then, "Hey, little sister."

"Hey, big brother," I answered.

"Are you causing trouble again?"

"Walker!" Christa admonished.

"What? Anyway..."

Laughing, I shook my head even though he couldn't see it. "No, I'm just thinking about Mom and Dad. Dad's already having issues. He knows there's something different about our significant others . And telling them that you were already married without them there would crush them. I just thought that your big to-do should be closer to or on your actual wedding date."

"And you still want your wedding this summer, right?" More noise before I could answer. "You're on speaker phone now."

This part made me uncomfortable. "Well, I was hoping for it, but then again, I didn't want my wedding before yours when you announced it to Mom and Dad first."

"Oh, honey," Christa said. "Plan for whenever you want. Like you said, Walker and I are already married. And I think you're right. Ours does need to be in November. We'll come up with something to tell your mom."

"Are you sure? Because I can move ours to next year. Embry doesn't care."

Behind me, Embry nudged me in the butt with his foot. I waved a hand behind me, shooing him off.

"No, no. Don't do that. This is our screw-up. We should have waited to get married anyway, but we wanted it for Haleigh. To be married before adopting her," Walker said.

"I understand your reason. I was just thinking about Mom and Dad. They're pulling through both of us leaving the nest, but they know something is off. I told Dad that we really couldn't tell them yet, not until he can get along with Christa and Embry. Don't need him shooting his mouth off, ya know?"

"Oh, I know. No, you're right. Plan your wedding for the summer. Christa and I will break Alice's heart and move ours to November. I can't believe we didn't think of that."

Embry must have heard that because he whispered, "Told you so."

Reaching back, I slapped his thigh...and brushed against an undone zipper.

Instantly, my blood boiled.

Shivering, I managed to take my hand off his body and concentrate on the conversation.

"Well," I said shakily. "Glad I could help."

"Seriously, I think you just saved my ass, because I'd have only remembered November. Not March. Mom would have thought I was the worst husband ever."

When Embry's fingers played over my shoulder and under my bra strap, I knew it was time to end the call.

"You're welcome," I said as calmly as I could while his fingers trailed down, down, down to skim over my breast. "Well, I gotta go. Alice wanted me to piece together a dress."

"Sounds awesome," Walker said sarcastically. "We'll talk to you later."

"Sure, sure."

"Bye, Tricia," Christa said.

"Bye," I practically yelled before hanging up and throwing my phone on the table. I turned on Embry. "That so wasn't fair!"

He chuckled and my eyes followed the movement of his body all the way down his sculpted chest, chiseled abs, and that smooth skin right where his erection was currently growing from between the halves of his open jeans.

His voice was low and rumbling when he said, "Are you just going to stare at me all night? Or do something about it?"

Looking up at him, I knew there was as much hunger in my eyes as there was in his. Crawling up between his legs, I leaned up on my knees and peeled his jeans back to reveal the hard length of him. He just stared at me, hands combing back through my hair, pulling the pen out once more so he had freedom. Fisting his shaft, I stroked him as we stared at each other.

And then, with his hands on my head, he guided my mouth to him. Just before my lips touched him, I licked them to coat them with moisture, the tip of my tongue brushing the head of him. His shaft pulsed in my hand at the sensation. Grinning, I licked him from base to tip, giving him solid contact. I kept my eyes glued to his face as much as possible, watching him watch my mouth.

Without warning, I opened my throat and took him all the way down. His hips bucked, pushing him deeper. Those big hands pushed my head down.

"Fuck," he breathed.

After a moment, my throat closed and I started to gag. He let me up, spit coating him as I pulled off of him. Fisting him once more, I bobbed up and down on the top half of him, stroking the base and up with my hand, mouth and hand meeting in the middle. I could tell he was trying not to move too much for fear of hurting me. His hips were straining not to buck up.

He never lasted long when I did this, but the intercourse after was always something to die for. As I sucked, licked, and popped the head of him in and out of my mouth, that muscular body strained. Reaching behind him, he gripped the back of the couch, eyes squeezed closed, teeth clenched. He was beautiful.

While he was busy, I burrowed my free hand into his jeans and palmed his testicles. Now the air whooshed out of his lungs, chest heaving. He was very close. One more trip down my throat and he'd come.

So, I gave him one last, savory lick before opening my throat once more. Over the past few months, I'd gotten really good at this and could stay down longer. His hips bucked again as they always did when I did this. He'd told me he couldn't control himself. Which was fine. That hard length pulsed in my mouth, and I squeezed his balls. In the next instant he was climaxing and I had to back off a little in order to swallow him down.

When he was spent, I released him completely, licking my lips. His eyes slitted open and watched me. Within moments, he was rock hard again, as if I had never touched him. The only evidence that I had was that his shaft glistened with my saliva.

Reaching forward, he urged me to stand up. I did. He undid my jeans. Moving his hands around my hips, he cupped my ass and pushed my jeans down my thighs. I pulled my tank over my head, leaving me in just a lacy bra and panties. Hands back on my ass, he pulled forward so that I straddled him on the couch. He pushed two fingers between my thighs and stroked me to make sure that I was wet enough. I was.

Satisfied with what he found, he pushed the panties aside, positioned the head of his shaft at my entrance, and guided me with a hand on my waist down over him. With me wet and tight, his girth stretched me deliciously. A minute passed of me just sitting there, him allowing me time to adjust, before he moved down on the couch and began thrusting in and out.

Nothing gentle. Gentle was hard for him after oral. It was like the animal had been unleashed and I was just along for the ride. He held my hips so I couldn't move while he hammered inside me, hitting me so good and deep.

Opening my eyes, I looked down into his. And I knew he was owning me, marking me.

Eventually, he slowed and I leaned forward to brace my arms on the back of the couch. His hands smoothed up my body to cup my breasts around my bra. I arched when his thumbs pressed over my nipples, the motion caressing the inside of my body with his. Closing my eyes again, I focused on moving over him, hips a slow seductive dance as I forced every inch of him inside me, stretching me.

One of his thumbs pressed over my sweet spot and I convulsed. In one swift movement, my back was on the couch cushions, his body on top of mine, jack-hammering into me.

I cried out, fingers gripping his sides, nails almost puncturing his skin. His arms were braced on the arm of couch, giving him all the leverage he needed.

Embry growled and showed me no mercy. We'd both discovered that we liked the pain. That was why I had tried not to laugh at Embry's use of "chains" with my dad. We'd been contemplating using restraints in the bedroom. But he liked my hands on his body too much to bind me. I just wanted to know what it was like to be at his complete mercy.

A particularly hard thrust pulled me out of my thoughts and had me arching off the couch, our stomachs slick with sweat, sliding against each other, skin on skin. I wrapped my legs around him, ankles locked behind his thighs. His body was losing its control, bucking hard against me. And that kind of lack in control caused my body to mimic his, as if it were rushing to meet his climax, to be ready when he was. His thrusting slowed but deepened and hardened, forcing my body up off the couch. My nails sank into the skin of his back and slid around his ribs to his chest.

A vicious snarl left him on his last thrust before he came. As his body emptied into mine, my inner walls squeezed him down and brought on my own climax. Hard and fast. Screaming, I raked my nails down his torso that was tensed as he finished inside me.

Luckily, the couch was wide enough that he could collapse beside me. If he'd fallen on top of me, I wouldn't have been able to breathe because I was trying to catch my breath from that intense orgasm. That was one of the reasons I'd picked the couch to begin with.

Panting, I said, "I...like this...couch."

He laughed beside me through his own panting. "Me...too."

Kissing my temple, he raised up on his elbow and then pushed up so he could fall over the back of the couch.

"Embry!" I said in alarm. "What are you doing?"

He used the back of the couch to help him stand up. "Don't wanna get blood on the new furniture. You got me pretty good."

As he stood to his full height, I saw what he meant. It looked like an animal had clawed at his torso, almost all the way down to his shaft. Blood seeped down his skin.

I sat up on my elbows. "Oh my god, I'm so sorry. I didn't realize-"

Leaning over the couch, he stopped me with a kiss. "Shut up. I love it."

"But...this is abuse."

That made him chuckle, and then it turned into a laugh. "It's not abuse if I love it. This lets me know that you still like what I do to you."

I rolled my eyes. "Of course I do. Any woman would." And then I gave him a look. "But another woman better not touch you. It'll be World War III if that happens. I will throw down."

Dabbing at the scratches with his shirt, he laughed. "I would pay to see that fight."

"You'd better bet on me. Another woman touches my man, I'll rip her apart."

"I'll always bet on you, devil."

"Good." As fast as I could, I managed to get off the couch before any more fluids got on it. Since he couldn't use a condom, leakage was inevitable.

I stumbled as I rounded the couch, legs still unsteady, and he caught me.

"You okay?"

I leaned into him, his blood smearing my alabaster skin. "Yeah, just a little shaky."

"I wasn't too rough?"

I gave him a look. "Are you really going to start that? I thought we agreed?"

"We did, but I still have to make sure," he said, smoothing my hair back behind my ear.

Apparently, it was a thing with the males to ask if their females were okay after rough sex. Nessie had told me that Jacob had been infuriating with it. So I'd had a talk with Embry. Unless I told him not to do something or that it hurt, he was good to go.

Kissing his chest, I hugged him. His jeans were still undone, but he was spent. And his shirt was still hanging onto his broad shoulders. "I'm perfectly fine. I didn't call foul once. I love it when you can't control yourself like that. But I know you'd never go too far and actually hurt me. That's not possible."

He hugged me to him. "I love you. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me."

Grinning, I went up on my tiptoes. "And you're the best thing that's happened to me. I love you, too."

He met me halfway and pressed a gentle kiss to my lips. "Come on. Let's get you cleaned up. You have more wedding stuff to plan."

On the way to the bathroom in our bedroom, I said, "I think I'm going to stick with July. Having an anniversary in the month with the same name as my mom seems a little creepy to me. Although, you are right that it would be easier to remember. I just can't do it."

He laughed as he got the shower ready. "July it is, then."

**RPOV**

I'd finally kept something other than crackers and blood down. Those blackberries had been amazing. Jacob had gone out to get more. I'd also asked for other fruits like strawberries, peaches, plums, kiwis, and bananas. A smoothie made out of those sounded delicious. But I was still craving blood.

Getting up, I went for the fridge and a glass. As I was pouring, there was a knock on the door.

"Ness, it's Derek and Adam. And Rhett."

Shoving the blood back in the fridge, I excitedly rushed for the door.

Swinging it open, I grinned. "Hey, guys. Come on in. Jake went to the store for me. He should be back soon."

Adam and Derek came in. The other man, Rhett, followed. He nodded to me but kept his eyes downcast.

Feeling for him, I stretched out my hand. "Hi, I'm Nessie."

Surprised, he looked up. When he saw that I was smiling, he smiled back and took my hand. "Rhett."

"That's a really cool name. Not a common one."

"Thanks. 'Nessie' is cool, too."

"Oh, that's my nickname," I said closing the door behind him. "My full name is Renesmee. It's a combination of my grandmothers' names. But everyone calls me Ness or Nessie. Jacob gave it to me."

He laughed. "Well, that's cool, too. Interesting."

"Thanks. Well, come on in. We were just relaxing like everyone has been telling us to do." I went back to the fridge. "I hope you don't mind if I drink some blood. I'm pregnant and half-vampire. I'm craving it."

The boys sat at the table. Rhett shrugged.

Derek made a hand motion at me. "Go for it. Whatever our little alpha needs."

I snorted into my glass. "Little alpha?"

Derek grinned. "Hey, that baby growing inside you is gonna be pack leader one day. Male or female. Might as well go ahead and get used to it."

"Hm," I said. "Haven't thought of that yet, but I suppose you're right." I turned to Rhett. "So, how are things? Do you like it here?"

He shrugged again. I studied him. He was pretty cute. Young-ish, probably in his mid-twenties. But looks could be deceiving like with Caden. He still looked nineteen or twenty but was actually the same age as Jacob. Rhett had brown hair, freckles, and green eyes. Not as tall as Derek or Adam. But he was built like Adam. Lean muscle instead of bulky like Derek.

"It's really wet."

We all laughed.

I nodded. "That is true. I'll give you that. But otherwise?"

"Otherwise, I like it. It feels cozy. The woods are nice, too. Very calm. Your mate and his pack are very kind to the animals and the other nature."

After taking a sip from my glass, I said, "I heard that about you guys, that you're very into the nature thing. That you're close to it. Caden talks like you have monsters inside of you. Monsters don't respect nature."

Rhett adjusted in his seat. "Many people think it's unfair that they were infected, and they see the wolf as a parasite, creating discord between them and the wolf. I don't. In fact, my infection got me away from a bad situation. It saved my life. Usually, it's the wolves that were born like this who like the woods, who feel at home. They've never known any other way. Besides, before I was infected, I loved being lost in the woods. That's how I got attacked. Well, I shouldn't say attacked. I was offered the infection and I took it. She could smell the bruises on my skin under my clothes and knew I didn't have a good life. She offered me the world, and I've never looked back."

The way he'd talked choked me up. Clearing my throat, I patted his hand. "Wow. That's amazing."

He grinned. "It is. And it brought me here, to Adam and Derek. I'm still not clear on the whole imprinting thing, but it feels right."

"Don't worry. You'll get used to it. And over time, you'll understand. I'm an imprint myself, and I had issues even though I was madly in love with Jacob. I just thought that it was a mistake, that he didn't want to feel for me but was forced to."

"What changed your mind?"

"The fact that I was madly in love with him. And knowing that I had a choice. The object of the imprint always has a choice. But I still loved him. Everything about him, and I couldn't ignore it. So I didn't. Have they told you my story?"

He shook his head, eyes intent on me.

I got comfy in my chair, putting a leg up. "Well, as I said earlier, I'm only half vampire. My mom got pregnant with me when she was still human. I was born ten years ago."

His reaction was to frown and look me over. "Bullshit."

Laughing, I twirled my glass around. "Seriously. Ten years ago this past September. I grew so fast that I reached full maturity, physically speaking, two years ago. Jacob never told me about imprinting, and ordered the others to not say anything. But Emily, a human and a wolf's mate, told me about it. And I made the connection, that he hadn't told me. I was pissed off that he'd kept that secret from me. But then I forgave him, took him back, and then cooked up something stupid. You see, Jacob had been my mother's best friend when she was human, and had been there when she was pregnant with me. At the time, he wasn't the alpha. Sam was. And he wanted to kill my mom and me while I was still in the womb because they didn't know what I was. But Jacob wouldn't let them even though he knew that I was slowly killing my mother. Because I really was. The day I was born, I cracked her spine. She was severely emaciated because she couldn't keep any food down. I took all of the nutrition in her body, and slowly killed her. After her heart stopped beating, Jacob had wanted to kill me. So, that's what he was going to do. Before he could, however, he told me that we met eyes over my aunt's shoulder, and he imprinted. Sam and the pack couldn't touch me because of that. I was safe. Now, fast forward. That something stupid that I'd cooked up? If he'd wanted to kill me, how could he possibly love me? The imprint must have made him act in ways that he wouldn't have normally. I was convinced that if he hadn't imprinted, he never would have fallen in love with me. But then, while we were separated, Leah told me his whole story, and how much hell he'd been put through. And my dad told me that it was like speed dating for soul mates. There's no point in going through the dating-getting-to-know-you phase because you already know you're soul mates. Jacob and I, since the moment he imprinted, have been inseparable except for those times I pushed him away. And he only stayed away because _I_ ordered him to. If someone else had, he'd have told them to fuck off."

For a long while, he just stared down at the table, taking in everything I'd said. I got up and refilled my glass.

"So, you're saying that Derek and Adam are my soul mates?"

Sitting back down, I drew my knee to my chest. "They're whatever you need them to be. So right now, I'm guessing they're your comfort, your guides to our world. You see, they've been madly in love with each other for years, and always scared to leave the rez in case one of them imprinted, forcing them apart. But then you came around, and they both imprinted on you. That says that they're meant to be together...with you."

Adam reached over to massage Rhett's neck. Derek rubbed his shoulder. He smiled at them gratefully.

"You and Jacob are okay with this, though?"

I grinned. "Absolutely. We don't mind same sex couples. Why should adding a third bother us? It's your lives." I leaned forward. "We know that Calahan is trying to cope with this. Jacob is doing, saying, anything he can to keep you three together. He knows how hard it is for Adam and Derek to be separated from you. You're their link. The question is, are _you_ okay with it? I mean, are you happy with them?"

As he opened and closed his mouth, I shook my head.

"Sorry, that was too personal. I shouldn't have asked. Consider them rhetorical questions."

Before he could say anything, the front door opened. Jacob came in carrying the groceries. Adam and Derek were out of their chairs a moment later, taking them from him. He just stood there, looking like he was wondering what had just happened. I laughed.

"Anymore out there?" Derek asked.

"I should say no," Jacob said, still wondering what was going on.

"But there are," Derek said. As he passed Jacob, he clapped him on the shoulder. "I'll get 'em."

"What the hell is going on?" Jacob asked. "I can't even bring in my own groceries?"

"Apparently not," I said, still laughing. "Come sit down."

He did as I asked, kissing me as he did so. "Still okay?"

I nodded. "Mhm. Kept 'em down. Thank goodness. I need to start eating something. Fruit seems a good way to go." I motioned over to Rhett. "Jacob, that's Rhett. Rhett, this is my husband, Jacob."

They shook hands over the table.

"Congratulations," Rhett said. "On the fight and the baby."

"Thanks. I'm still kind of freaking out over the baby part."

Derek and Adam started fighting behind us about where something should go. Jacob looked over his shoulder, shook his head, and rolled his eyes.

"So," Jacob said, turning to Rhett. "You're sticking around, right? Calahan said some of his pack was wanting to transfer out. That it was either too wet or too crowded here."

Adam and Derek froze behind us.

"I...um, I don't know yet. I mean, I'm still here. My original plan was to leave, but," his eyes went to the two wolves behind us, "things change."

Jacob nodded. "They do. We'd love to have you around, though. The more the merrier. And you're friends with Adam and Derek. They're good guys and I trust them."

The two wolves sat back down on either side of their imprint. Both of them quiet, avoiding eye contact.

"We're sorry for saying anything. It's your business," I said as Jacob laid his arm on the back of my chair.

Rhett shook his head. "No. It's okay. I just haven't talked about it. Not wanting to hurt anyone, you know?"

We both nodded. It was a hard thing to deal with.

"I want to travel, but at the same time, I really like these two. They treat me right. I don't want to leave them behind."

Both Derek and Adam looked they just wanted to wrap him up and cuddle him between them. They both reached out to touch him at the same time.

Jacob and I exchanged a look.

Jacob leaned forward. "What do the two of you want?"

It was their turn to exchange looks.

Derek swallowed hard. "To stay with him."

Adam nodded in agreement.

Jacob looked back at me. I knew what he was thinking so I shrugged, leaving the decision to him. He looked back to them. "If that's what you want, then maybe we can work something out. Nobody ever said that you had to stay here. The danger seems to be over, and I want the two of you happy. You've done this pack proud. You've earned a slice of happy."

"Really?" Adam said, perking up as if he didn't believe he'd just heard right.

I nodded. "Why not? It would give the three of you a chance to bond and cement the imprint. It's kind of hard to do that here with all of us breathing down your necks."

"My only concern," Jacob said, "would be the other packs located wherever you plan on going. I thought there were rules about that kind of stuff."

Rhett nodded. "There are. I'm a beta, though. They wouldn't see me as a threat. And they'd be confused by Adam and Derek unless it was a pack that Caden had contacted. Then they'd know. But for the most part, I could just say that I'm traveling for another pack and these two are to keep me safe."

"That would work?"

Rhett nodded. "Oh yeah. Betas who travel but are already members of a pack are always sent with wolves who are more dominant than the betas. You see, omegas, lone wolves, have a certain wild scent to them because they aren't close to other wolves. Betas carry the scent of their pack."

Jacob nodded, his hand reaching out to rub my knee. "Then, if the three of you want to be together, to travel, I suppose Calahan and I could talk. I'm assuming you need his permission."

Again, the wolf nodded.

"I'm sure he and I could come to an agreement."

Rhett frowned. "You'd do that for me? You don't know me."

"True. But like I said, Adam and Derek are mine. When they're happy, I'm happy." He leaned back in the chair. "We really gotta get you guys to accept decency."

He laughed. "It's strange to see a pack be led by kindness and generosity. By love. And that it actually works is even stranger."

"Well, we are a strange bunch," Jacob said. "Maybe we're doing it wrong."

Rhett smiled softly and looked at the two men framing him. "No. I think it's the rest of us who've been doing it wrong." He looked at Jacob. "Thank you. Even if he doesn't go for it, thank you."

Jacob smiled. "You're welcome."

"We should be getting you back," Adam said. "Calahan said before dark. The sun is setting."

"You have a curfew?" I asked.

"Not just me. The whole pack. Calahan still doesn't know the area. And he's a cautious alpha."

"Clearly."

The three of them stood up. Jacob stood up and shook hands with all three of them.

"It was nice to meet you, Nessie."

"Thank you. You, too. Take care of our boys."

He grinned. "I'll do my best. When they let me."

Rubbing my stomach, I nodded. "I know exactly what you mean."

Jacob, Derek, and Adam all gave me looks. Rhett grinned.

"Don't go agreeing with him," Derek said. "We won't live that down."

Raising my glass to him, I smiled. "Too late."

The three of them fought on their way out the door. Once Jacob closed the door behind them, he took my glass, rinsed it out, and refilled it.

"Thanks, baby," I said, as he handed it to me. Despite their flourishing relationship, Derek and Adam had been keeping me fully stocked on blood.

"Welcome." And then he started cutting up some of the fruit.

The tropical scents wafted over to me, making my stomach growl. He heard it and chuckled, throwing all the slices into a bowl. When he was done, he set the bowl in front of me, and then went back to messing around the kitchen.

I frowned at the bowl. "Are you trying to distract me from cooking your dinner by putting food in front of me?"

"Now where would you get an idea like that?" he said, but I could hear the smile in his voice.

"Because I never eat first. And I can smell the bread and salami."

"Are you okay?"

"As long as I don't touch it or mess with it, I'll be fine. Could you get me a fork, please?"

A moment later, one appeared in front of my face.

"Thanks."

The fruit all looked amazing. No doubt he'd spent a lot of time with each item making sure that it was perfect. He'd been gone way too long for the small amount that he'd come home with. He sat down next to me at his spot at the head of the table. As usual, I threw my leg over his lap. The sandwich on his plate _looked_ good, but it definitely did not smell good. My stomach flipped.

_Listen, kid,_ I thought. _You need to chill. We've got a bowl of fruit in front of us that we need to eat. You liked those blackberries, so quit fussing._

Yes, I was having a conversation with my unborn baby in my head. But hey, it kind of worked. Focusing on the bowl in front of me, my stomach settled a little. So, I dug in. Everything was phenomenal. Fresh, ripe, crisp. Delicious.

But I was still hungry after I'd practically licked the bowl clean. I went for another package of crackers. Didn't want to eat all my fruit in one day even though I was tempted.

"I also bought some chocolate ice-cream just in case you were feeling up to trying stuff," Jacob said as he polished off the sandwich.

_Chocolate ice-cream_, I thought. _How does that sound? Please say yes._

No queasiness or gagging at the thought. That was usually a good sign when it came to food. Getting up, I grabbed a spoon, opened the freezer and said hello to the tub of deliciousness. Not even bothering with a bowl, I popped the lid off and dug in. Mmm, so sweet. Still soft from the ride home. Perfect.

Jacob laughed while I just stood there basking in the awesomeness that was chocolate.

"Pace yourself, babe."

"I don't care. At least I get the taste of it."

"Yeah, but you won't like the taste if it comes back up. That's why I can't eat peppermint anymore. Made myself sick on candy canes as a kid."

Sitting back down with my tub of awesome, I waved my spoon at him. "Shut up. I'm enjoying this. If this baby likes chocolate, we're gonna be best friends."

He rolled his eyes. "Chocolate. Carlisle's going to be thrilled with this breakthrough. And you've been taking your vitamins?"

I nodded, loading my spoon with more creamy goodness. "Every morning. Ooo, you know what sounds good?"

"I'm not going to like this, am I?"

"Hershey's dark chocolate. Maybe a Mr. Goodbar. Oh, and some chocolate milk. The organic kind, not the store brand. Store brand is too sweet."

He just stared at me, blinking. "Anything else you might want on that grocery list?"

"Chocolate-covered raisins." I smiled sweetly at him, knowing it had been a rhetorical question.

"Sorry I asked." Getting up, he grabbed our dishes and kissed my head. "I'll go to the store in the morning."

"You're such a sweetie. Do the other guys know how much of a softie you are?"

"The ones who are imprinted, yes, because they know how I feel. The others can kiss my ass."

Giggling around my spoon, I said, "I love it when you talk like that."

"Of course you do. You're a pregnant alpha female with a protective alpha male mate." He sat back down next to me after cleaning up the kitchen.

I dug my spoon back into the ice-cream and held it up to him. He opened his mouth and took it.

"That is good."

"Mhm," I muttered. "Probably won't last the night."

He kind of scooted away from me before saying, "I really don't want to be put in the dog house for this, but if you eat all that sugar, you could gain weight." And then he flinched, as if he expected me to hit him.

While his eyes were squeezed shut, I dipped a couple fingers into the ice-cream, scooped some up, and smeared it on his face. His eyes snapped open, surprised.

"I am fully aware of that, thank you very much," I said licking my fingers. "But baby gets what baby wants. I'm actually pregnant and I will take whatever comes with that blessing. Besides, my body will probably snap back after the baby's born. I've never really gained weight no matter how much sugar I ate. Remember that one Halloween? I've never been so sick in my life."

He laughed, wiping off the chocolate with a napkin. "We did eat a lot of candy that year. You spent the next two days puking it all up."

I pointed the spoon at him. "Exactly. But now, I'm feeding two. Plus, I fully plan on sticking to fruits. Maybe veggies but they didn't look as good as the fruit."

"Probably because the fruit also has sugar."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "Hush, you. Just be glad I'm keeping it down."

"I am, baby. Trust me. I feel so useless every time you...yeah."

Dropping the spoon, I stroked his now clean cheek. "I know you do. And I was kidding. I am going to watch what I eat. But I also need to eat what I can keep down. I'm going to need my strength when the baby comes."

Running his hand up my arm, he gripped my wrist and put my palm to his lips. "Yeah, I didn't even think about that. I'm still trying to wrap my head around this."

"It's what we wanted...isn't it?"

"Yes," he said quickly, leaning forward. "Yes, Nessie. I want this, a baby with you. Is that what you're scared of? That I don't want this?"

Swallowing hard, I shook my head. "No. I know you do. You just...seem more worried than happy."

"I am happy." Sliding out of his chair, he went to his knees at my feet. "Very happy. Ness, I cried at the ultrasound. Or almost did. Held it back by force of will. The sentiment's the same, though. But I am worried, too. What if...what if I'm not meant to be a dad? What if I screw up? I don't want my own kid to hate me."

Heart melting, I cupped his face. "Jacob, that won't happen. You're going to be great. You are meant to be a dad, always have been. And screwing up? All parents do, except for those who think they're perfect. The kids of those kinds of parents, hate them. But just the fact that you're worried about that means that you're going to be great. We'll both make mistakes, but we'll learn from them. We'll grow with our kids. That's the way it's supposed to be. Do you really think that I'm not worried about that, too? I am. But I'm more excited about the fact that a child of ours is actually going to exist. Pieces of you and me together in one tiny person."

His eyes shined with those aforementioned tears. "No kid could ever hate you," he whispered.

Taking a deep breath, I stroked his sharp cheekbones and kissed him. "Come on, let's go watch tv before we get emotional. We'll be fine. And we have tons of help and support."

Gripping my wrists, he stood up, pulling me with him. "Gotta put the ice cream up first."

"Right."

Laughing, I put the lid back on the tub and shoved it in the freezer. As I closed the door, I got a whiff of the blood in the fridge. Immediately, my mouth watered. I'd been drinking more and more over the past month.

"Ness?"

"I'm craving blood again."

"You've already had like five glasses today."

"I know. I am half vampire. Which means the baby's-what?-a fourth vampire."

He frowned. "Yeah, but should you really be craving it that much?"

I shook my head, wrapping my arms around myself. "I don't know. Let's just go watch tv. I'll be ok."

But the further I walked away from the fridge, the more parched I became. Swallowing convulsively, I tried to get some saliva to coat my throat. Jacob noticed. As soon as I sat down on the couch, he went back into the kitchen, and came back with a glass.

I took it from him, drinking greedily. "Thanks."

"I'll stop by the house on my way to the store tomorrow to talk to Carlisle."

"I wanna go with you. I've been cooped up too long."

He rubbed my legs, pulling them over his lap. "Okay. If you feel up to it."

"Jacob-"

"If you get sick, Ness."

"Right. Yeah. Sorry."

"It's okay. I'm just trying to watch out for you."

"I know you are." I reached for his hand and laced our fingers. "And I really do appreciate it. I don't think I tell you that enough."

He played with my wedding band. "It's my job, remember?"

"Still, I should say it more. I seem like an ungrateful bitch."

He chuckled. "No, you're a woman who likes to move around a lot. I just don't want this to turn into a bed rest type of deal. That kind of shit scares me. But I agree. You do need to get out of the house more. Visit with the girls. I know you've been staying in because of me."

I smiled at him. "Thank you."

He rolled his eyes. "Don't be surprised if I call you once every hour."

"Or thirty minutes?"

"Or that."

Reaching over the coffee table, I grabbed the remote. "I think I can handle that."

**JPOV**

We were down at the Cullen place. Ness was on the bed, her shirt rolled up again. Carlisle was checking everything. The baby was a little bigger than before, with more of a baby shape. Now _that_ made it more real to me. Her once flat tummy now had the famous baby bump.

"Definitely looks good," Carlisle said. "Exactly what a two month fetus should look like. I absolutely expect to be able to tell you the sex next month."

Without taking my eyes off the screen, off my child, I said, "Can we talk about the blood intake?"

"Of course."

He hit some buttons and started printing the picture on the screen before turning to us on the rolling stool. Ness cleaned herself up with a towel and lowered her shirt as she sat up.

"Tell me what's going on."

"Jacob is worried. I guess I am, too. I've been craving blood more and more over the past couple weeks. Yesterday I drank six glasses. At first it was one, maybe two. On the plus side, I can keep down fruits, chocolate, and water."

Carlisle frowned. "The fetus seems to be growing just fine, at a normal pace. The blood doesn't seem to be affecting it growth-wise. It could just be that your vampire side is needing the nutrition that the baby is taking. And since you can't eat meat or any other forms of protein that we can find, the vitamins aren't enough to replenish what you can't eat. So your body is craving that protein. Before the pregnancy, you were able to eat meat, balancing out your need for blood. That venue isn't there for you now, so your body is craving the one form of protein it can hold down."

"So, it's not the baby," I said.

"Correct. At least, I don't suspect so. If it was the baby, I'd say that that would mean it was more vampire. If that were true, it would be growing at a faster rate, the way Nessie did inside of Bella."

Nessie played with her hair, her lips between her teeth. "So, if I can get over my aversion to meat sometime during the pregnancy, I should stop craving so much blood?"

Carlisle shrugged. "I wish I could tell you for certain."

This was making me edgy, and he could see it.

"Even if this was a human pregnancy, every woman is different. Why do some women crave pickles, and others can't stand them? Their bodies find ways to give the fetus and mother what they both need. The facts I can give you are that Nessie is healthy. The baby is healthy. No accelerated growth. No weaknesses on Nessie's part, unless she's lied to me."

We both looked at her.

She looked between the two of us, and then shook her head. "I feel fine. Perfectly ok. My jeans are getting snug, but other than that, I'm fine. I eat what I can and I get full. And I take my vitamins."

"Then I say that the excessive blood intake is perfectly fine," Carlisle said. He put his hand on my arm. "I understand why you'd worry. But remember, this isn't a normal pregnancy, just like Bella's wasn't. Nessie isn't fully human like Emily."

I nodded. "Ok, I'll keep that in mind. But what are some other protein alternatives?"

He frowned. "Peanuts, peanut butter, broccoli. Any green vegetable actually. Spinach."

"Ugh." Nessie made a face and held her stomach. "All those sound disgusting."

Carlisle smiled and nodded. "Which is probably why you're craving the blood. If the craving continues to grow, we'll have to hunt more but further away. There's more variety up north anyway."

"Could that cause a problem for us?" Nessie asked worriedly.

He went over to her and put a hand on her shoulder. "No, sweetie. We'll take care of it."

"I really don't want to move."

"It won't come to that."

"But what if we have more kids after this one, and I crave blood?"

She was starting to panic, but Carlisle caught it. He cupped her face in his hands. "Then we'll deal with it when it gets here. For now, we're worrying about this baby. And this baby is going to be born here. In the future, if we have to, we'll just leave for the duration of the pregnancy. There are plenty of places for us to go. A month or so before you're due, we'd come back here if that's what you wanted." She calmed a bit. "See? There is a plan. We'll make sure you're safe, you and the baby. Okay?"

Taking a deep breath, she nodded. "Okay. Okay, I'm good."

"Good. I don't want to have to put you on bed rest because you're stressing needlessly."

Her eyes met mine over Carlisle's shoulder. We'd just talked about that last night. Now I was panicking.

"I'm good," she whispered.

He looked over at me, and I couldn't hide my expression fast enough. "Both of you, honestly." He grinned. "This is a baby. You're supposed to be euphoric, happy. Not worried with anxiety. Jacob, we're going to take care of her, of both of them." He turned back to her. "Nessie, your baby is fine. Perfectly healthy. You should be celebrating."

I swallowed hard. "Forgive me, doc, but Ness was a baby, too. We didn't exactly celebrate her when Bells was pregnant."

"Yeah, and I killed my mom," Ness said in a factual tone.

I hadn't really meant the comment. It had just sort of slipped.

Carlisle sighed as if we were both being thick. "Listen to me. Nessie, you were a first. We didn't know what to expect. It was Jacob who thought to give your mother blood for nourishment. If we'd thought of that early enough, I doubt that any of that would have happened. So, it was our fault. Not yours. I mean, how could we not think to give you blood when you're half vampire? It was ludicrous on our part. But now, with you pregnant, we know that the blood is nourishment. You're perfectly healthy two months into the pregnancy. That's good. Have some faith. Please."

She and I shared a look. She reached for my hand, and I took it.

"It's not me I'm worried about. My baby, my husband, and my family are all I care about, and I need them all safe."

Now Carlisle and I shared a look. Both of our hearts probably melted.

I cupped her face. "We're fine. We just want to make sure that you're okay. And the baby."

She smiled weakly. "Well, then, we're square I guess."

There was a knock on the door.

"Is everything okay in there? You've been in there a while." Bella.

We all laughed.

"Come on in, Bells."

A nanosecond later, my mother-in-law burst through the door, Edward hot on her heels. She went straight for Nessie, who showed her the ultrasound photo. Edward came up to me, placing a hand on my shoulder.

Bella put her hand to Nessie's stomach. "Oh, my baby has a baby bump!"

I snorted. "Bells, when did you get so...girly?"

She glared up at me from where she'd put her ear to "the bump". "Not one word from you, Black. I had a baby, and now that baby is having her own baby."

"That just sounds wrong."

"Shhh! I'm listening!"

I rolled my eyes.

"Hi, Daddy," Nessie said, waving to Edward.

He grinned. "Hi, sweetie. How's the sickness?"

She shrugged. "Well, I didn't throw up last night, which was a first. But this morning wasn't all that pretty."

"Hopefully it will die down soon."

"Hopefully."

She went back to talking with Bella.

Edward turned to me. "So how are things at the shop?"

I shrugged, stuffing my hands in my pockets. "Uneventful, but busy. Xavier is learning fast. I'm managing it while Frank works to get a shop going up here."

"And who will manage that one?"

"Not sure. Haven't really thought about it yet. The deal is kind of a ways off, so we have some time."

"Well, I'm sure it will all work out." He turned to Nessie. "Sweetheart?"

Both Bella and Ness looked up from the ultrasound photo.

"Nessie, did you hear that Christa has moved the wedding to November? And Tricia has set the date for hers as July twelfth."

Huh? Wait, when did-?

Nessie jumped off the bed and came over to us. "No, I didn't hear. How did you find out?"

"She called Alice to let her know. Apparently, neither Christa nor Walker wanted to have to remember two anniversary dates."

Slapping her forehead, she laughed. "I totally missed that, too. Holy crap."

"Wait, wait, wait," I said. "Hold on. Tricia's getting married?"

Ness gave me a look. "Uh, yeah."

"When did this happen?"

Edward and Nessie exchanged a look.

Nessie laughed. Apparently my expression amused her. "Embry proposed on New Year's. I thought everybody knew that."

"Apparently not," Edward said quietly with a smile.

"That bastard didn't tell me a thing. Why didn't you tell me?" I asked her.

She shrugged. "I thought you knew!" And she thought about it. "But I guess that explains why you haven't said anything."

They all laughed at my expense.

I rolled my eyes. "You people are driving me nuts." Sighing, I reached for her hand. "We gotta get going if you wanna go to the grocery store. Frank needs me at the shop today."

She squeezed my fingers. "Okay."

We said our goodbyes to everyone. When we got in the truck, I tucked the ultrasound photo up in the visor with a clip.

Nessie grinned.

Now that we had a solid guess about the blood, she seemed more relaxed than she had last night after I'd pointed it out. She hadn't gotten much sleep, either. Rolling around, she'd tossed and turned, avoiding laying on her stomach. I'd been awake the whole time. At around four in the morning, she'd finally dozed off, me following her.

She was glowing again as we drove for the store. Watching her, I promised myself that I'd stop worrying so much. Neither Carlisle nor Edward was worried. That made the tension in my chest loosen. She was glowing with health, her hand constantly rubbing the small bump under her shirt.

If she could be this confident, then so could I.

* * *

><p><strong>I love Jacob. And Embry. What about that LEMON, huh? Tricia was an animal! I know you guys love them, so I decided to keep at least Tricia's POV in the story. Let me know what you think! Love you! xoxoxoxo<strong>


	3. Chapter 3

**Month number 3! Okay, so April is next. After that, though, I'm going to skip May and June. Just a bunch of repetitiveness that nobody needs. This chapter has a little bit of sadness but also cuteness.**

***Disclaimer***

**Please Enjoy!**

* * *

><p><strong>March<strong>

**TriciaPOV**

Embry swam through the blankets and sheets to wrap his arms around me and pull me in against his body. He kissed my temple.

"So what are you doing today?"

A couple weeks ago, Jacob had come up with a steady work schedule for the boys that worked at the shop. He rotated them out so each of them had a couple days off, or half days. Today, Embry had an all day, nine to five shift. So I'd made plans.

Cuddling into his chest, I said, "I made plans with a bunch of the girls. We're going to Seattle to shop wedding and baby."

"How is Ness? I haven't seen her in a while."

"She's good. Craving a lot of blood, though. She said that Carlisle believes it's because she can't get protein into her system any other way. Eating meat is a no-no for baby."

His hands stroked over my skin. "Do they know what it is yet?"

I shook my head. "Not yet. Ness said this month they get to find out. She and Jacob thinks it's a boy. Intuition and all that."

He nodded. "I can see it. That kid is gonna be something special with parents like that."

"Totally. Apparently, Jacob is still having issues coping with the fact that she's pregnant. Even with the baby bump."

His eyebrows went up. "She's showing?"

"If she wears the right stuff." I pulled back a little. "You really haven't seen her in a while, have you?"

He shook his head. "Nope. At first Jacob kept her cooped up in their house. I know she's been hanging out with Emily and Shelby a lot though. Clearly, she got tired of being in the house."

Stretching against him as the alarm went off again, I said, "Yeah, Jake is pretty anxious about the trip since he has to be at the shop. He already calls her every hour. It's gonna be every five minutes now. But Adam and Derek are going with us. Plus Christa, Morgan, Alice, Emma, Bianca, and Angelica. I'm pretty sure Ness, Emily, Cricket, and I are going to be safe."

He laughed. "Wow. They're all going with you?"

"Mhm. Haleigh and Claire, too. Which means Quil."

"How many vehicles is that? Four?"

"Something like that."

"Geez. Well, have fun. Be careful. And take my card."

I frowned. "What?"

Reaching over to the bedside table, he picked up his wallet. "My money is your money. If you find something you want, get it. We need to get you a card, too. We can do that tomorrow. I'm off."

"Embry-"

"Hush." He put the card in my hand. "Take it."

Wrapping my hand around it, I said, "What if they ID me?"

"Oh, I forgot. Alice took care of that." He went into his wallet again and pulled out an ID card with my face on it.

I took it and found that it had my first name on it but Embry's last name. My eyes widened. "Is this even real?"

He laughed. "Yup. She and Jasper have connections. It'll work for now until we get married and you can change it yourself if you want."

"Holy crap. That's so...illegal."

"You don't have to use it. I have cash."

Stroking my finger over Embry's last name attached to my first, I shook my head. "No, I'll take it."

"You like that, don't you? Our names together."

Smiling, I nodded. "Yeah, I do. I can't wait to be Mrs. Call."

His fingers stroked my cheek. "I can't either."

"Thank you."

"For what?"

"Rolling with all of this. Letting me move in. A woman taking over guy space."

He pulled back to look down at me. "Are you kidding? Tricia, I've been waiting since I was sixteen and first phased to imprint, to have this. And now I do. Members of our pack aren't complete without our imprints."

I grinned. "So you're saying that all the guys are suffering inside, being hopelessly romantic, until that special woman comes around?"

Laughing, he said, "Suffering in silence would be a better description if we didn't have the wolf telepathy, but yes. That about sums it up."

Leaning into him, I kissed his lips. "Well, I'm glad I could end your suffering."

"Mmm," he murmured against my lips. "Me, too."

The alarm clock squawked again, forcing us apart. Groaning, he rolled out of bed and padded to the bathroom in all his naked glory. There were welts on his skin that had been scratches last night. It was a good thing he healed fast. Managed to keep up with our sex life. While the shower started up, I stretched in bed. Parts of my body were sore where he'd gripped me. No doubt there were bruises, but I loved them. I needed a shower, too, but there was no way we could shower together without us adding more steam. Embry had to go to work. And I was supposed to meet up at the Cullen house at around eleven.

Getting out of bed, I slipped into my robe and went to make some coffee. Embry was a coffee guy. Who knew? There wasn't enough time for me to make breakfast for him, but I did manage to pack him a lunch like a good housewife. Although, I did want to find a job. Being at home all the time didn't seem like fun. Or maybe start online college courses.

The shower cut off. I popped a couple jumbo muffins that I'd made yesterday into the microwave. Lemon poppy-seed was his favorite, so I'd found a recipe instead of the insta-muffin mix. I'd made blueberry vanilla muffins for me.

He came into the kitchen, scrubbing his black hair with a towel. He was dressed in a greased up flannel shirt and some greased up jeans. The bottom half of the dresser was dedicated to his work clothes.

"Smells good. I'm starving." He kissed my cheek before going for the coffee pot. "You gave me a workout last night. Who the hell needs a gym?"

Laughing, I took the muffins out of the microwave, tossed them on a plate, and set them in front of him at the table. "All I am is cardio. You'll need the gym if you wanna keep up your muscle."

Thinking about it, he lifted his shoulder. "I could always do push ups on top of you. That's a great incentive."

"Mmm, sounds interesting."

Reaching for my hips, he pulled me down across his lap. "It does, doesn't it?"

We both got quiet after that. His fingers played over my hip while he used the other to eat breakfast. I played my fingers in the hair at the nape of his neck, lost in thought. Lost in how happy I was.

"Do you want kids?" he asked suddenly.

Jerking in his arms, I turned to look at him. "What?"

"Kids. Do you want them?"

"What kind of question is that? Of course I do. I couldn't imagine living with you the rest of my life and not having little ones run around, watching you try to discipline them."

He laughed. "Just checking."

"You want kids?"

"Absolutely." Taking my left hand, he rubbed his thumb over my ring.

"What's wrong?"

He shook his head. "Nothing."

"Liar," I said quietly.

He didn't talk for a long moment. "It's scary."

"What is?" Geez, it was like pulling teeth, but this seemed important to him.

"Death."

My breath froze in my chest, and I studied his face to make sure he was serious. He was.

He took a deep breath. "The members of the pack have gotten used to not aging. I haven't changed since I first phased. But with you being human and aging, eventually, I'll stop phasing to age with you. And I will die. That's what Sam is doing with Emily. It's just not something that we talk about, losing each other."

I didn't know what to say to that simply because I couldn't change the circumstances. So I chose humor. "You just magically looked twenty-something when you were sixteen?"

He chuckled a little but it was half-hearted. "Yeah. We had major growth spurts. Something to do with our genes."

My heart bled for him. I didn't know what it was like to have a taste of immortality or something close to it. "I'm sorry, Embry."

Clearing his throat, he shook his head as if he were shaking himself out of a mood. He smiled up at me. "Don't be. I was just thinking out loud. I shouldn't have said anything."

"No, I'm glad you did. I want to know these things."

"I mean, I know that we have years ahead of us. It's just something to think about again. Something that I have to prepare our future kids for. Sometimes I envy Jacob and Ness. They're going to be around a very long time."

Bringing my hands up, I stroked his face. "It is scary. Death is always scary. But it's also a part of life. It's why I choose to live my life the way I want to. And this, being with you, is damn near perfect. Making love with you every day and night, making plans with you. Sure, we may never travel, and we may live here all our lives, but that's perfect for me. I just want to be happy in whatever I do. And you make me happy. I'll die with a smile on my face because I know I lived my life with you. Our kids, should we have them, will probably phase. And they'll imprint and have to make the same decision. But at least we'll be together. Always."

Swallowing hard, he pushed his face into my hair to rest against my neck. "I'm just scared to lose you. I don't want you to die. It's not me I'm worried about. I'd gladly lay down my life for you. I just don't like the thought of the world without you."

"Oh, Embry." I wrapped my arms around him and rocked back and forth. "I'm not saying that I want to die or for you to. I don't like the thought of the world without you, either. If there was a way...I don't know."

We just sat like that, holding each other. I hated to see him like this. He wasn't scared to die; he was scared of losing me. It was touching but also heart-wrenching.

Eventually, he pulled away, breathing hard and clearing his throat. His eyes were red-rimmed but no tears had fallen. Or if they had, they were in my hair.

"I'm going to be late."

"Right, work." Hopping off his lap, I grabbed the lunch bag from the fridge. And then filled a thermos with some coffee, added a bit of cream and sugar, and handed it all to him.

"Thanks." He bent down to kiss me. "Love you."

"Love you, too. Have a good day."

He grinned. "In the grease? Absolutely."

Shaking my head, I shooed him out. Once he was gone, I hopped in the shower. And of course, the shower was the place I thought about everything. Everybody was scared of death, but especially those that had seen it. Embry had with Seth, had probably telepathically witnessed Seth's thoughts as he went under if they were in wolf form. That made it more real. Seth had gotten a second chance with Shelby, from her infected blood. But that was a once in a lifetime type of chance. And the Cullens? They were immortal as well, watching those they loved age and die. Bella staying frozen while her dad aged. How did Sue deal with that, knowing that her kids would live long after she was gone? How hard was it for the pack to watch Sam age, knowing he'd leave his daughter behind to be taken care of by the pack, by her godparents? How did Sam feel? Did he want to stay with his daughter, but not want to live without Emily?

Growing irritated with myself, I forced myself to think of something else while I scrubbed the conditioner out of my hair. When I was done, I dried off and got dressed, slipping Embry's card into my back pocket. Just in time, too. A horn beeped outside.

Frowning, I opened the door to see Nessie standing on the front porch, arm raised to knock on the door.

She smiled. "Hey. We thought we'd pick you up instead of making you walk all the way up to my place."

She was so kind. "Thank you."

"We'll be walking all day anyway. I need to stretch my legs. Jake's been keeping me locked away."

Tearing up for no reason, I reached forward to pull her into a hug.

"Oh," she gasped as she hugged me back.

I cleared my throat. "Understandable." Pulling back I looked her up and down. "But look at you! You're glowing. And the bump! How far along again?"

Laughing, she rubbed the bump under the long sleeve tee. "Three months."

"You look amazing."

"Thank you. You've got a glow, too, you know."

Flushing, I pulled at my hair. "Really?"

She nodded. "Definitely. Embry's been good to you?"

"Fabulous actually."

Leaning toward me as if she were dishing a secret, she said, "All imprinted males are like that. Females have to be treated like glass."

Laughing, I grabbed my coat and stepped out onto the porch. A whole caravan was parked in the circular drive. "I had a talk with Embry after you and I talked about the sex thing. Things are much better now."

After I locked the door, she threaded her arm through mine. "That's good. Even after I talked to Jake, he had issues. The man just can't understand that he's the alpha. Rough is going to happen. And now that I'm pregnant? Oh, break out the bubble wrap."

I couldn't help but laugh. "Well, I can understand that, too. You were pregnant during the fight."

"True. Which should tell him that both me and the baby are pretty damn durable."

We hopped into the SUV laughing. Derek was driving. Of course.

"You ladies ready?"

We all nodded. Christa was sitting between me and Morgan. She gripped my hand, the one with my engagement ring, and squeezed. I returned the sentiment. She and my brother would outlive me and Embry, too. Tears threatened again, but I held them back by force of will.

"Alright, I guess we're ready." And he pulled out of the drive, four other vehicles following.

**RPOV**

Something was bothering Tricia. But I didn't want to pry.

It was a few hours' drive to Seattle. We'd been on the road for one of them, and I was craving blood. Not wanting to freak anybody out, I tried to control it by taking deep breaths, trying to distract myself with the conversation. But Morgan saw it from her seat behind Derek.

"Ness? You okay, hon?"

I smiled, but it was strained. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm okay."

Derek shot me a look.

I shook my head.

But he didn't care. "She's craving blood."

"What?" Tricia asked.

Morgan snapped her fingers like she understood. "I'll get it." Taking off her seat belt, she hung over the back of the seat and dug through something.

Christa explained to Tricia. "Nessie is half vampire, right? Well, she can't stand meat, which is her main form of protein in her human diet. So she craves blood more and more as the baby grows and takes most of the nutrition."

"Oh," was Tricia's response. "That makes sense."

A hand appeared beside me holding a styrofoam cup complete with lid and straw. "Here ya go, Ness. All you had to do was ask."

"But I didn't," I said, taking it from her. "Where did...is there a cooler back there?"

Morgan leaned on Derek's seat, chin on her hands, and nodded. "Jacob called Alice."

"Of course he did." Sucking on the straw, the blood was thick like a milkshake, and took a bit to get it up. But once I did, my craving ebbed. I sat back in relief, and smiled. Jacob was thinking of me, of us.

Speaking of, my phone started ringing in my pocket. I knew who it was before I looked at the screen.

Grinning, I answered it. "Hey, you."

"Hey."

"Checking up?"

"Of course. How are you and the little one?"

I couldn't help but be ecstatic when he talked like that. "We're good. Had to give in to my craving, but it took an hour on the road before it showed up. By the way, thanks for thinking ahead and talking to Aunt Alice."

He chuckled. "I told you, that's my job. I'm supposed to think of the welfare of my wife and baby. I'm the dad, remember?"

A sound over the phone had me asking, "You just shuddered, didn't you?"

His tone suggested that I was right. "How'd you guess?"

"Because you do every time you call yourself 'dad', 'daddy', or 'father'. Or whenever someone else does. Why is that, by the way?"

Sounded like he shrugged, and something in the background squeaked. "I don't know. It's just weird to think about. Maybe it'll wear off after he's born."

Laughing, I said, "We don't know if it's a boy yet."

"Eh, gut instinct. You're carrying a boy. Period."

"Uh-huh," I mumbled, taking another sip through the straw. "You're just following my dream."

"Hey, those dreams were pretty accurate. I'll bet that the next kid is a girl."

"Oh, so you want another one? This pregnancy isn't stressing you out enough?"

Silence, then, "I'll let you know once this one gets here."

I laughed around the straw. "I can't wait to see how you handle the labor."

Another shudder sound. "Yeah, about that. Anyway, when do you want the next ultrasound where I can tell you 'I told you so' about it being a boy?"

Rolling my eyes, I took another sip before saying, "Well, I don't have any plans for tomorrow. Are you off or have a half day?"

"Off. I'll call Carlisle if you want."

"Sure. That would be great."

"Ok, I'll do that. I gotta get back in the garage. Be careful."

"I will."

"Talk to you later. I love you. Both of you."

Grinning again, I said, "We love you, too."

All the girls in the car, in unison, sang, "Awwww. We loooooooove you, Jacob!"

I shooed a hand at them.

"What was that?" he asked laughing as if he had indeed heard it.

"The girls telling you they love you, too. Now hang up. You gotta get back to work."

"Right. Love you."

"You already said that."

"I know. Gotta say it again."

With a chuckle, I said, "Love you, too. Now, go."

"Bye."

"Bye."

Finally, the phone clicked as he hung up first.

Someone in the back made a disgusted sound. "You two are disgustingly cute."

Morgan.

Turning around in my seat, I grinned at her. "Why don't you and Shelby hang out more?"

She frowned. "I don't know. Why?"

Derek laughed, looking at her in the rear view mirror. "Because you two are a lot alike, that's why."

Huffing, she crossed her arms over her chest. "I can't help how I feel," she said, nose in the air. Christa gave her a look and bopped her nose. Morgan pouted at her.

"Where's Haleigh?" Tricia asked with a laugh.

Christa said, "She wanted to ride with Claire, and Claire goes nowhere without Quil. They're in one of the bigger vehicles. Needed some me time. And Walker was working with Embry and Jake at the shop today."

"I didn't know he was into cars," I said.

Tricia nodded enthusiastically. "Oh, yeah. Every girl in high school was after him to fix their pieces of crap cars. It was so obnoxious."

Christa laughed, wiggling her left hand with the ring on it. "Joke's on them. I'm the one who married him."

Tricia nodded again. "Thank god for that. If he'd been a different kind of guy, he'd have _a lot_ of baby mommas right now."

We all went into fits of laughter and talking about our guys. Even Derek joined in. This. This right here was what I'd been needing. A day away from the house to visit with the girls, to shop, to just get some fresh air. My only worry was my craving for the blood while we were out, but no doubt someone had come up with something. Hence the styrofoam cup. But other than that I was determined to have a good time. Jacob and I had been online searching for baby stuff, like cribs and swings and strollers. Today, I was going to see a lot of those in person and take pictures to show him. Of course, I wasn't sure we'd need a stroller. This baby was probably going to be like I had been, like Leila and Brayden were...always in someone's arms. A stroller may not be necessary, but carseats, cribs, and carriers were. As well as bottles and clothes. Even though we didn't know what the baby was yet, there were neutral colors to go ahead and buy. I only planned on registering, not actually buying anything, but with my Aunt Alice around that probably wouldn't be the case. The same went for Christa and Tricia with wedding stuff. Good thing we had, like, five vehicles.

"Ness? You okay up there? You got quiet," Morgan said, leaning on the seat again. Apparently, she was taking it upon herself to be my watch-wolf today. Or maybe Jacob had asked her, because she, like he, wouldn't believe the "I'm fine" mantra on the spot. She'd push for me to tell her if something was wrong.

I smiled at her, realizing my hand was doing circuits over my growing tummy. "Yeah, I'm fine," I said automatically.

Pursing her lips, she quirked an eyebrow.

Laughing, I held up my cup. "I'm fine, really. I still have half a cup. I was just thinking about all we still have left to do before the baby comes. And how happy I am to have the day with all of you. I've missed girl time."

Leaning forward, Christa rubbed my shoulder. "We're glad to spend some time with you, too. If we have to, we can kidnap you from time to time out from under Jacob's nose."

I laughed. "That would be awesome. I think I could handle that."

"Not sure he could," Derek muttered.

"Oh, he'll survive. He's just nervous about being a dad. Thinks the kid is gonna end up hating him or something."

They all laughed as if that were an absurd thought.

"Seriously?" Christa giggled. "He's, like, the cutest thing ever when it comes to kids. Seriously, a guy _that_ dominant who is great with kids would make any woman hot. You got freaking lucky. I mean, don't get me wrong, Walker is cute with Haleigh, and he's an alpha, but Jacob? Be hated? That's insane."

"Amen to that," Tricia said.

"That's what I told him," I said, sipping through the straw. This was making me crave more fruit. "I told him that parents who are scared they'll screw up are the best. Those that think they're perfect end up earning their kid's hatred."

"That's true," Christa said. "My parents thought they were Mr. and Mrs. Perfect, like they couldn't do anything wrong, and yet they locked me up. Fidiots."

Morgan patted her leg. "Well, you're free now and one badass wolf with a badass mate. I think you've more than made up for those years."

"And an adorable little girl," Tricia pointed out.

I nodded in agreement. "She'd still be shy and an introvert if it weren't for you and Walker. She wouldn't be the bright little girl that she's turned into under your care. And she wouldn't have found a friend in Claire."

She grinned at me. "You and Jacob are gonna be awesome parents. I can't wait to see you two with that baby."

"Me, either," Tricia said.

Morgan just nodded.

I smiled, but still worried about Jacob. Derek must have seen it on my face because he said, "Don't worry, Ness. Everything will turn out fine. It's normal for first time parents to be scared that they weren't cut out for parenthood. Just wait until after the baby's born. That baby is going to be just as loved as Leila and Brayden. And like I said a month ago, eventually that baby will grow up to be alpha of this pack if Jacob ever steps down."

Morgan snorted. "Even if Jacob doesn't step down, that kid will be looked up to the way his dad is, because make no mistake, with Jacob raising him he'll be good enough to follow."

I turned back in my seat with a grin at her. "So you think it's a boy, too, huh?"

She shrugged. "Just a figure of speech, but if the shoe fits..."

"When's the ultrasound to find out?" Tricia asked. "I wanna know so I can blow up your phone and demand you tell me."

Chuckling, I said, "Tomorrow. Not sure when, though. Knowing Jake, as soon as possible."

"Do _you_ think it's a boy?" Christa asked.

I shrugged. "A while back, I had this dream of my and Jacob's kids. There were three. The eldest was a boy. The middle was a girl. And I was pregnant with the third, but I have a feeling that one would be a boy. I don't know why, but those dreams felt scarily real."

"Well, that settles it," Morgan said.

"It does?" Tricia.

"Mhm. Boy, girl, maybe a boy. Nessie's dreams were always prophetic in some way before, so I'm going to trust her subconscious. Wouldn't bet against it."

Derek nodded. "I agree."

"See? It's settled."

I agreed with their conviction, as did Jacob. We both felt that the baby growing inside me was a boy. William. Jacob and I had agreed on the name before I'd gotten pregnant, and we were sticking with it. William Edward. Although, if we had more kids, I wasn't planning on naming them after family. Maybe the girl. In my dream, Jacob had called her Jules. Short for Julia? I shook my head. No. Juliette? Absolutely not. Julianna? Ooo, I liked that. But her middle name? Jacob's mother's name had been Sarah. Hmmm, I'd have to think about that. Meshing my mother's name with Jacob's mother's seemed a good way to go, the way Mom had done for me. I liked the idea, but I'd have to play with the names.

Suddenly my stomach rumbled.

"Oh good grief. Will I ever stop eating?"

Chuckling, Morgan leaned over the back of her seat. "What do you want? I have blackberries, strawberries, kiwis, aaaaaand peaches."

Of course, Jacob had thought of everything.

"Blackberries, please."

She handed me the container and I dug in. Again, so good!

They all laughed and lapsed back into conversation. I just sat back and listened.

**JPOV**

Now I understood what an anxiety attack felt like. Like I was going crazy, that's what it felt like.

Yet again, I paused underneath the hood of the same car I'd been working on for two hours. It was a simple fix type of problem, but the thought of Nessie out of Forks and away from me kept making me shake.

A heavy hand landed on my shoulder. Embry.

"Dude, she's fine. They all are. And if someone did manage to get through the wolves and Alice, they'd have a hell of a time getting through Tricia and Cricket. And Claire. That kid has some serious attitude."

Bracing my arms on the frame of the car, I hung my head. "I know. I just...they should be there by now. She should have called me."

"Maybe she's waiting on you to call her. That's what you've been doing. The last time you checked in was two hours ago. And you said you'd call Carlisle for something."

I gave him a look. "You've been eavesdropping, haven't you?"

He grinned shamelessly. "Of course I have. You're still one of my best friends. Gotta look after you just like the girls are looking after Ness. You need support, too, you know."

"Don't be such a woman."

Laughing, he punched my shoulder. "I'm serious, man. The boys and I got your back. You need anything, let us know."

"Shouldn't you be planning a wedding? And thanks for telling me, by the way." This was the first shift we'd had together since I found out he'd proposed, not that I couldn't have called him myself. I'd just been busy with Ness.

Smiling, he shrugged. "Figured you'd find out eventually. Tricia and Ness talk all the time. Don't be surprised if Tricia knows about your sex life. Pretty sure Ness knows about mine."

Squeezing my eyes shut, I pinched the bridge of my nose. "That's awesome. I didn't need to know that. But for the record, I don't have one right now."

Though I had noticed the pink welts on his skin when he'd shed the flannel shirt in favor of his tank. They were everywhere. Clearly, Tricia wasn't unsatisfied in bed. Walker and I had exchanged a look behind his back. He'd just shaken his head and looked like he was going to try to forget he'd seen them. If they were still pink hours later, that meant she'd bled him. I would know. Nessie's nails had gotten me a few times.

"And I didn't need to know that. But, I think you can still...you know, even though-"

I gave him a look.

He raised his eyebrows and hands. "Nevermind. Anyway, my point is, Nessie is fine. Carlisle says she's perfectly healthy, right? The baby, too?"

I nodded.

"That's good, then. They're fine."

"I guess." Straightening up, I wiped my hands on a rag. "Hey, I may actually need some help."

"Okay, with what?" he asked rolling back under the car he was working on.

"You know anything about home remodeling?"

Rolling back out, he gave me a look. "What kind?"

I shrugged. "Nothing huge. I just remember that Seth and Shelby are using one side of their closet as a nursery for Brayden, but they have an extra door to the closet from the bedroom. Our extra doorway is in the closet."

"So you want a door to the other half of your closet that opens into the bedroom? And a door in the doorway you do have?"

I nodded. "Thought it would be nice, so that we wouldn't wake the baby if we had to get into the closet. And I think we're going to be like Seth and Shelby, not wanting the baby too far from us at first all the way on the the third floor of the house. I can get the doors easy enough. I just don't know much about tearing down part of a wall. Or if it can even be done."

On the roller, Embry shrugged. "Sure. I know a fair bit. I'll take a look if you want."

"Cool."

"I could come over after we get off work. I'm sure they're going to be gone a while. It'll give you something to do."

"Sure. Sounds great." Pushing the rag into my back pocket, I said, "Hey, I'm just gonna go call Carlisle and check in on Ness."

I heard his chuckle from under the car. "Surprise, surprise."

As I passed him, I kicked his boot.

His chuckle followed me into the main building.

**RPOV**

Utterly exhausted but completely content, I pushed open the door to the cabin to be greeted by a loud pounding sound and then a saw. Derek, Adam, and I all shared a look as we dropped all the bags. I hadn't intended on getting anything today, but Aunt Alice had glared at me until I'd given in.

Heading for the bedroom, Derek and Adam followed me down the stairs. Tools were strewn across my bedroom floor. At least nothing was on my bed. But that left my head as I looked at the wall beside the fireplace. There was a door-sized hole in it.

The pounding started up again and I covered my ears.

When it stopped, I yelled, "What the hell is going on in here?!"

Embry peeked around the opening and Jacob came out of the closet, holding a bunch of clothes.

Coming over to me, he threw the clothes on the bed. "Hey, baby. Did you have fun?"

"Uh, yeah. What's going on?"

He looked behind him. "Oh, we're putting in a couple doors."

"Uh, you're...what?"

Chuckling, he wrapped his arms around me. "We have a double closet, but only one doorway to lead to the other side. I thought it would be a good idea to copy Seth and Shelby, and use the other side as a nursery for when we first bring the baby home. But we need doors so as not to bother him if we have to get into the closet while he's asleep."

Looking around his shoulder, I looked at the hole. "Oh."

"You...don't agree," he said, losing his enthusiasm.

Stroking my hands up his chest, I said quickly, "No, no. I-I love it. It's a great idea. But...do you guys know what you're doing?"

Embry came around the hole, laughing. "Yes, Ness. I know what I'm doing even though I'm not a contractor or anything. High school was grand. We'll get it fixed up asap. I did most of the hard work tonight. Really, I just have to smooth the edges and fit the doors in. And then you guys can start the decorating or whatever."

Pulling away from Jacob, I went to hug him. "Thank you for doing this."

He wrapped his arms around me in a brotherly type hug. "Not a problem. Anything for you and Jake. You know that. And you look great, by the way. I know I haven't been around in a while. Really. Pregnancy looks good on you."

"Thank you, Embry. And, I've already told Tricia this, but if you need any help with the wedding and a break from my aunt, just give me a call. I'm really not doing anything while Jake is at work."

He grinned down at me. "Thanks. It's appreciated. Is she at home?"

I nodded. "We dropped them off first since I had the most baggage."

"You bought stuff?" Jacob asked.

I rolled my eyes. "Are you crazy? I wouldn't have come home with anything but my aunt is pushy. As are the rest of the girls. They kept supporting her. But nothing big," I said pulling away from Embry to go back to Jacob's arms. "No cribs or anything. But I did take pictures on my phone. We'll probably get the big stuff at the baby shower."

"Shower?"

Embry had gone to clean up. After he was done, he went to stand with Derek and Adam.

"Uh, Jake, we're gonna head out."

He nodded. "Good deal. Thanks again. All three of you."

They all nodded, said goodnight, and left.

Moving into his body, I just rested against him, ear pressed to his chest. I was exhausted after the long day of walking. He held me and rocked me, hands rubbing my back soothingly.

"Yes, shower. I know you know what that is. I'll probably get the guys to take you out or something since it'll be girls. Aunt Alice knows which cribs and such I liked. She'll know what we decide on because she'll see herself buying it."

He growled a little. "I really wish they'd stop spending their money on-"

"Hush," I said, shaking my head. "If they're willing to, let them. Really. I've seen the account numbers. Dropping a thousand dollars on a crib is like fifty cents for a piece of candy. It's nothing, Jacob. They have enough to support the entire pack, their kids, and grandkids. Especially with the stocks. What else would they spend all that money on if not to help the family?" Stroking his chest again, I continued. "Jacob, I know that you want to support me, and the baby. And I'm proud of you for what you're doing at the shop. I've heard nothing but good reviews. But these things, they're gifts from family who can afford it. Please don't tarnish that. They _want_ to spoil us. You're providing the money we need for groceries and other various things for the baby. They're gifting us with the bigger things. Besides, since when have the Cullens ever done anything without sparing expense?"

That made him smile a little. "That is true."

"I have an idea."

Stroking my hair back, he asked, "And what is that?"

"The money you make at the shop, we'll save it up. Open up a joint account or something. And after we have all our kids, however many we have, we'll take them on vacation. Anywhere...except Italy. Maybe Disneyland. Or down to Tennessee to the aquarium. Or go on a cruise. Just us and the kids. Get them out of Forks to see something other than clouds and rain. Oh, also, as each child is born, we open a saving's account for them. I'm sure Mom and Dad would be willing to help fund that. We can tell them to start putting money there instead of throwing it at us. Not too much, but just a little each year or so. We can't stop my aunts and uncles, but it's something at least."

Cupping my face, he leaned down to press his lips to mine. "You are a genius. That sounds like a great idea."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. I love it." One of his hands came around to caress my stomach gently. "So what did you get today?"

Excitement suddenly reviving me, I grabbed his hand and dragged him upstairs. He laughed as I shoved him onto the couch and brought all the bags around.

And then his eyes widened. "How many bags are there?"

Clearing my throat, I dug into one of them. "A few. Aha!"

The one thing I was most excited about was the pacifier that I'd been searching for. I'd seen it so much online, and I'd wanted it. When I'd found it, that was the one thing I had to have, just because of how amusing it would be to see Jacob's face.

It was worth it.

When I held it out to him, he just stared at it. And then, shaking his head, he laughed. "Really?"

It was in the shape of vampire teeth, sharp canines and all.

"I just couldn't help it. I had to have it."

"You are unbelievable," he said taking it from me. "He is part werewolf, you know."

I gave him a look. "Hello, I know that." I went back to digging in the bag. "That's why I got _these_."

There had been three onesies that I'd also had to have because they'd made me think of Jacob. One of them was black with "Raised by Wolves" written in red lettering. The second was white and said, "Daddy's Little Cub". And the third said "I Run with the Pack".

Taking them from me, he handled them with care, gaze softening. "Wow. I can't believe you found these. They're great."

"I also got a pacifier with a paw print on it." When he looked at me, I shrugged and sat down beside him. "Everything is neutral just in case we're wrong about it being a boy. And I have a feeling that Aunt Alice is having some custom made for us since this _is_ the child of the alpha male."

Reaching out, he wrapped an arm around my neck and pulled me against him, his lips in my hair. "Thank you," he whispered. "This is really great. I love it. Now show me the pictures. I wanna see what you found."

Pulling back, I grinned as I dug my phone out of my pocket. "You're getting into this now, huh?"

He shrugged, laying the tiny clothes out on his huge thigh. "Buying stuff and making room for the baby is helping it all sink in. We're already three months pregnant, and you're showing through your shirts. I only have six months left to get things ready until he's here."

Opening up my phone and going through the pictures, I said, "Well, don't overdo it, okay? Don't stress if everything doesn't get done. I think we should just worry about the nursery for one. I bought bottles and stuff to start out. And we'll probably get even more at the shower, okay? We'll be fine."

Sitting up more, he kissed my hair. "I'll see what I can do. Now, whatchya got?"

We spent most of that night going through pictures and deleting all that we decided against. Carriers, carseats, cribs, bedding, every big thing that I'd found. We'd narrowed everything down to two or three choices. Except for the crib. We'd found the one we wanted. One of the rooms upstairs already had a crib for visiting babies. But our baby's crib was going downstairs in the nursery Jacob was making in the other half of our closet.

It was late before we managed to make it down to bed. Jacob tossed all the clothes into the closet. Embry had cleaned up the tools before he'd left. In my underwear, I crawled into bed feeling the weight of my stomach. So weird. Resting in the crook of Jacob's arm, his other hand came around to rest over the swell of my stomach.

"It's so crazy."

"What is?" I asked, stroking his arm.

"This. That a baby is growing inside of you. That you're going to get bigger, that he is. I never realized how...awesome a woman's body is."

I choked out a laugh.

He gave me a look.

"Not like that. Well, yeah, like that. But that's not what I meant this time."

"I know," I assured him, still smiling.

"All this that you go through to grow this life is amazing. All the changes. And that you're not broken."

I looked at him questioningly. "What are you saying?"

"Probably that women are much tougher than men. We'd probably be having meltdowns and freaking out. But you women just take it in stride and deal with the effects of the pregnancy as they come at you. You guys are fighters."

Rubbing my hand over his where it rested on my lower tummy, I smiled up at him. "Of course we are. We're protecting the piece inside of us that connects us to the men we love. Our bodies are more yielding, softer, than a man's. A man's body is made to protect his woman, his family. Our bodies provide the nutrition and warmth that a small life needs to grow stronger in order to survive outside the womb. I will do anything for this baby. I guess that's what a mother is."

"That's definitely what a mother is." He kissed my forehead. "And you're a great one already."

"And you're a great father already." He swallowed hard, holding back the shiver. "Calling to check on _both_ of us. Telling me you already love this baby. The way you react to the ultrasounds, the heartbeat, the tiny clothes. You love it."

"I do. I love both of you."

We shared a gentle kiss.

"I told Carlisle we'd be down there in the morning after breakfast. He told me to tell you to eat light."

"Don't I always?"

He laughed. "Yeah, I guess you do." He kept chuckling as if he'd thought of something.

Smiling, I asked, "What?"

"Something Embry said to me today."

Quirking an eyebrow, I waited for him to go on.

He rolled his eyes. "We were talking about you and Tricia gossiping about each other's sex lives or something to that effect. I knew he and Tricia had rolled between the sheets because of the nail marks on his skin. Men gossip, too, and I told him how you and I didn't...weren't, you know. And he told me that we could still have sex even though you're pregnant. I just looked at him. I mean, I think my sex drive has gone into hibernation for a while."

I laughed. "Yeah, I've heard that a woman's libido can get out of control when she's pregnant, but I just can't imagine having sex right now. Especially now that I'm showing. That's just..."

"Awkward," he finished for me. "Yeah, I know what you mean. Besides, I know how rough we can get, even when we try to go slow."

"Exactly. Even though I love you and the want is still there, I'm perfectly content."

"Me, too."

When he yawned, I drew a finger down his nose. "Time for sleep. I'm exhausted and it looks like you are, too."

Gripping me tighter to him, he nodded. "Definitely."

He cuddled down so that his face was buried in my hair. A heartbeat later, he was out like a light, snoring softly. It was great that he was aware of me even in sleep. If I were to get out of bed, the snoring would get louder. If I came back to bed, it would soften. Jacob was the best man in the world. Well, for me, anyway. A lot of women felt the same about their men.

Jacob was my other half, and therefore, the best man in the world _for me_.

**JPOV**

Walking down to the Cullen house, I found myself nervous again. And not in a good way. I kept expecting Carlisle to say that something was wrong. But also, I really wanted this baby to be a boy. I wanted Billy to know that he had a grandson from me before he passed on to be with my mother.

Nessie was practically skipping beside me, swinging our clasped hands, and humming while she sipped blood from the cup in her other hand.

As usual, when we walked into the house, it was quiet except for the video games that Emmett was playing. Bella greeted us and Edward started up the piano. I could see Alice on the internet searching for baby clothes.

As we went up the stairs, Bella called up to us, "Remember, I wanna know! And an ultrasound photo!"

Rolling my eyes, I followed Ness down the hall. "Yes, Bells. We know."

Carlisle was waiting for us when we came in. He did his preliminary exam after Ness hopped up on the bed. Other than baby stuff, she'd also bought a bunch of maternity clothes, saying that she didn't want to wear my sweats and hoodies all the time, even though she'd wear them around the house.

"Everything is normal," he said before I could ask. "Alright, sweetie, you know the drill."

After rolling her shirt up, Ness laid back against the elevated bed. Before he started the ultrasound, he pulled out a different kind of stethoscope and pressed it to her stomach.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

He moved the little circle around, just listening at first. And then he smiled. "Listening to the heartbeat. The band I used last time had a fetal doppler inside it. I've found that the doppler helps to hear the heartbeat sooner because it echoes. After about two months, the stethoscope can be used. And everything still sounds good in there as well. Now," he said, pulling over the ultrasound machine. "Let's see if we can get a good read on the sex, shall we?"

Nessie grinned excitedly, gripping my hand.

Carlisle did his thing with the goo, spreading it around, and then looked at the screen. I did, too. The baby actually looked like a baby now.

"Oh, wow," Nessie whispered. "Only a month's difference and he's that big."

Carlisle nodded. "It's amazing how fast babies can develop, even in a human way. And...it looks like the two of you are right."

She and I shared a look.

"About?" I asked.

He turned to us, grinning. "It's a boy."

"Really?"

He nodded and pointed to the screen. "You see that? It's pretty clear to me that it's a boy."

Leaning forward, I studied the area he was circling with his finger. Sure enough, I saw what he saw. My knees went weak.

Squeezing Nessie's hand, I grinned. "I told you so."

She squeezed back. "I believe we were both right."

"Whatever." Excited, I looked down at her. "It's a boy," I whispered, and kissed her forehead.

_Now_ it was real. I was having a son. A baby boy.

While Carlisle printed out tons of pictures, I wiped the tears from Nessie's cheeks. We'd been guessing this whole time. To actually know that we were having a son made everything real, made it sink in.

She looked down, rubbing her stomach. "William," she whispered.

That was right. We'd agreed some time ago that if we had a boy, his name would be William after my dad. Middle name Edward after her dad.

Resting my hand over hers, I echoed her. "William."

Ten minutes later, we made it back downstairs. Nessie waved a picture in front of Bella's face. Instantly, Bella was off the couch. "So?" she demanded excitedly.

"Oh like you didn't hear?" I said.

She shook her head. "I was studiously not paying attention. Now tell me."

Alice, Esme, and Rosalie all joined Bella to stand around us.

"It's a boy!" Nessie said as if she'd been dying to say it.

They all squealed.

I looked over at Emmett. We shared an eye roll. Breaking away from the girls, I went to stand with Edward, Emmett, Jasper, and Carlisle, who had come down behind us.

Emmett slapped me on the back. "Baby boy! Good job, man. We're gonna teach the little guy to fight."

"After he phases," I amended. "You're not gonna break my kid."

Didn't faze him. He just grinned.

Jasper chuckled. "We'll rein him in. Until then, I think you should worry more about the women coddling him." He gestured with his chin to the group of women.

I chuckled, watching them, too. "I'll be sure to invite you to hang out with the guys. He can play poker with us and watch football."

"Sounds good. If you ever need a mood-calmer, just call. I've made a few trips for Seth and Shelby."

"Thanks." We shook hands. "That might be needed."

"For both you and the baby."

We all laughed.

"I hear ya. Thanks."

Edward just smiled, laughing quietly. "Congratulations. He'll be in good hands, and have a great role model for being a good man."

He and I shared a loaded look full of years of knowing each other, fighting over Bella, fighting _for_ Bella. Nessie's birth and their acceptance of my imprint. And now my marriage to their daughter, the fact that we were having a baby. I was surprised at how much what he said meant to me.

Clearing my throat, I managed, "Thank you, Edward."

"Jake," Ness called.

I turned to her, still feeling a bit emotional. "Yeah."

"We need to go see your dad. Tell him. He'd love to know."

"Yeah, sure. Call Becca and Rachel to meet us there. They'll kill me if I tell Billy and not them."

"Will do." She said bye to her aunts and Bella, pulling her phone out of her pocket as she came to stand with me.

Wrapping my arm around her, we said our goodbyes and headed out. Nessie managed to get my sisters on the phone and to Billy's house for the announcement and the picture pass-out.

They and their husbands were waiting on us by the time we walked down. I'd wanted to take a Cullen car, but Ness insisted that we walk. It had started to rain on the way down. I gave her look. She didn't need to get sick...not that she ever had before, but still. There was a first time for everything.

Billy rolled out to meet us, a big grin stretching his lips. We ran up to the awning as the rain picked up.

"Hey!" he said, holding his arms out.

Ness bent down to hug him. "Hi! It's been a while."

"Yeah, you should grace the rez more often with your presence."

Laughing, she backed up. "Blame your son. He's been keeping me locked up. Until recently."

"Hey! I have not. You've been free to go out. I did not keep you in the house against your will."

Billy gave me a look. "Mhm."

And then rolled over my foot as he took the lead inside.

"Ow," I said sarcastically as I followed them inside.

When I stepped inside, Ness was already hugging Rebecca and Rachel. Paul was messing around with Henry and a toy wolf. Tom was in the kitchen, probably getting the little guy something to eat. It was lunch time after all.

Becca and Rachel grabbed me and tugged me into hugs and kisses.

"This is so exciting, Jake. Really, congratulations," Becca said. "A baby is a blessing. You have nothing to be worried about. You'll be great."

I gave Nessie a look.

She shrugged. "I need a social life. Besides, they're your sisters."

I rolled my eyes playfully. "That doesn't meant you gotta tell everyone. Geez, woman."

Hugging Rachel, I asked her, "How are you and Paul?" in a low voice.

Smiling sadly, she shook her head. "Not yet. But the doctors say we're both healthy, so that's a good thing. It took Emily and Sam a while so..."

I rubbed her neck. "Keep your head up, okay? It took us a while, too. Maybe it's a wolf thing."

She nudged me, smiling. "Sometimes it's hard to believe you're younger than me. You went and grew up on us."

"Amen to that," Becca said. "But it suits you, Jake."

"It really does, son," Billy said.

"Thanks. To all of you."

They all went to sit down and stare at me and Ness.

Billy clapped his hands. "Now, tell us what my newest grandbaby is gonna be."

They all laughed as Nessie came to tuck herself under my arm. She was chewing her lip.

"Jacob?" she said. "You wanna do the honors since I told everyone we were pregnant?"

Nodding, I cleared my throat. "We're having a boy."

While they cheered, Nessie handed out all the pictures, showing them what Carlisle had seen. Now that I knew what I was looking at, it was pretty clear it was a boy.

"Yes!" Billy said. "The second grandson for this Papaw. I can dig it."

We all laughed. He'd been tons more cheery since first Rachel and then Rebecca had come back for good. And Henry. Man, he loved that kid.

"You're going to get a taste of your own medicine, Jake," Becca said, rocking Henry while he played with his toy. "You were terrible. If your son is anything like you were, I can't wait to see that."

Laughing, I pulled Ness back into my side. She was rubbing her belly again. "Thanks, Becca. I appreciate the support."

"Anytime, baby brother."

I rolled my eyes.

"So, do you have a name picked out yet?" Tom asked. "Took us forever to figure out what to name Henry."

"Actually," Nessie said, sitting down in my lap, "we do. We figured that out before we got pregnant."

"Oh, really?" Paul said, pulling Rachel into his lap.

She nodded. "Mhm. William, after his grandfather." She motioned to Billy. "And Edward for his middle name after my dad."

"William Edward Black," Billy said with a smile. "I like it."

I could tell he was really happy about the naming of my son after him even though he tried to hide it. He looked down at the picture Ness had given him. It meant a lot to me that it meant that much to him. All these years, there had been times that I had been less than appreciative of him, of all he'd done for me. His daughters hadn't wanted to come home in fear of memories of our lost mother. That had hurt him more than he'd let anybody see, but I'd caught him going through all the pictures every now and then, clearly hoping for his girls to come home.

Now they were. Rachel married into the pack. Becca had Henry. And now, I was having a son. The next generation of the pack was well on its way, especially if more females became pregnant. The enemy was gone for now, the stress levels practically obliterated. Nessie had been afraid of not being able to get pregnant but Carlisle had told her that her body knew when it wasn't a good time. The same probably went for all the females. I had a strong feeling that a lot of them were going to come up pregnant soon. A baby boom of our own.

Ness and I spent about an hour or so down there. Everybody ribbed on me and my "bad boy" attitude from when I was little, hoping that my son would give me the same problems. Nessie begged for story after story.

"Alright, alright," I said, waving my hands. "Enough, guys. I gotta get Ness home."

She turned to look at me. "Jake-"

"You're hungry. I can hear it."

"We have food, Jake," Billy said.

I gave Ness raised eyebrows. "That's not what she's hungry for."

She lowered her eyes, and I knew I was right.

"You mean blood?" Becca asked nervously.

I nodded. "Half vampire who can't get protein through meat or other human food. There's only one other way for her to get it. Plus any other nutrients that she's not getting through the fruits and veggies."

Billy chuckled just as nervously. "Sorry, but I'm fresh out."

Nessie laughed as she stood up. "It's okay. Jake is right, though. We kind of missed lunch, and I am craving. I know it can be difficult to come to terms with. That's why we try not to talk about it."

I stood up, hands on her hips. "Yeah, plus I've gotta go buy a couple of doors and install them for the closet."

"Need any help?" Paul asked.

"Sure, if you're not busy."

He and Rachel shared a look. She shrugged. "Go for it."

We said our goodbyes. Rachel and Paul both followed us out. Their house was on the way to ours.

Nessie's phone rang.

"Hello?"

"You better tell me what that baby is," I heard very clearly in Tricia's voice.

Laughing, Nessie rubbed her stomach. "Calm down, Tricia. I was just about to text you. We all were right. It's a boy."

"Yay!"

And then she calmed down enough that I couldn't hear her. They passed a little back and forth before she hung up. Apparently, Tricia was sending Embry up to the house to help finish up the project. When we reached the street that Paul and Rachel's house was on, she said her goodbyes and went home. Paul stayed with us. At our turn off that was just down the road from the Cullen turn off, Embry and Tricia met up with us.

Tricia hugged Nessie. "I'm so happy for you. And happy that we were right. Can I see the picture?"

"Sure." Ness dug it out of her pocket.

Embry and I bumped fists, then Embry and Paul while the girls gushed over the picture.

"Women," Paul murmured.

Tricia glared at him. With those ice blue eyes, she looked freaking creepy. When Paul held up his hands in surrender, she went back to the picture, smiling as if nothing had happened. Embry laughed, clapping him on the back.

Chuckling, I went up to the girls. "Ladies, we should get inside before the rain starts up again. Neither of you need to get sick."

They both grinned at me and started up the drive.

"Dude," Paul muttered to Embry. "Your girlfriend is scary as shit."

"She's my fiancee."

"Whatever."

"I think she's hot," Embry said.

Laughing, I followed them up the drive. "You should see the nail marks in his skin."

Paul shook his head. "Don't wanna know, man. Too much info for me."

The moment we got to the house, Ness made a beeline for the fridge. Tricia grabbed some fruit to cut up while Ness poured a glass of blood. The boys and I went downstairs to finish up the closet project. Embry really did know what he was doing. Once he gave me and Paul the measurements, we went into town to buy the doors. Luckily they had ones that matched the door that was already attached to my closet.

Before Ness and I fell into bed that night, the doors were hinged up nice and tight. Now all we had to do was finish moving stuff around and paint it up, though I wanted to do the painting so that Nessie wasn't around to breathe in the fumes. There was a window at the end of the closet that I could open that was just above ground level.

But that was for another day. This day had been filled to the brim with excitement and finishing up projects.

While Nessie snoozed on my chest, I put a hand behind my head and stared at the ceiling. A son. I was having a son of my own. Immediately, I'd felt a sort of male connection with the baby the moment I'd realized it was a boy. Protective, but more...proud, I supposed. How would I have felt with a baby girl? Probably fiercely protective. I was that way with Nessie. No doubt my daughter would be a daddy's girl. This little boy was definitely going to be a momma's boy, I just knew it. But I'd definitely teach him the guy stuff. It was my responsibility as the dad.

What do you know. I didn't shiver that time. I had a feeling that was over. I had a son on the way. No more shuddering or shivering. I was going to be a father. It was time to act like it.

Tucking Nessie closer to me, her swollen belly rubbing my side, I fell into an easy sleep, finally accepting that we were pregnant.

Six months left until we met him.

I couldn't wait.

* * *

><p><strong>So? How are we liking Jacob? I love him to death. Still my favorite. I'm hoping to get more Walker and Christa in, but I just don't know. We'll see. We did see some girl time in this chapter which I loved, but it's always hard for me to write. I'm more comfortable around guys. I tend to insult girls too easily. And tips for me? Review! I love them! Please? Pretty please? No matter what, I still love you guys! xoxoxoxoxo<strong>


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey, y'all! March was my last pre-written chapter so it took a little longer for this one. Plus, I've started working on something else, another project for another series. If you're a fan of the Mortal Instruments series, I am trying to start something up. Probably going to need another notebook for notes on that one, and we'll see if I can keep up with all these projects! **

**But for this story, here is April! Month number 4! Like I said, I'm skipping May and June, going straight to July and the baby shower! Woo-hoo! Don't worry, I will be posting chapters for after Will's birth, after he arrives home, and some more fun stuffs! I sense tons of cuteness after he's born. I CANNOT wait to write Jacob as a daddy! Anywhozzle, enough of my rambling!**

***Disclaimer***

**Please Enjoy!**

* * *

><p><strong>April<strong>

**RPOV**

"Seriously?" I said, looking into the mirror.

"What?" Jacob asked from around his toothbrush in the bathroom.

"My bras don't fit anymore. I can't handle anymore boob-age."

I could hear him choke out a laugh as he spit out the toothpaste. As I looked at myself practically jumping out of the cups of my bra, Jacob appeared behind me. He slid his hands around my waist and across my extended stomach. I definitely had to change over to maternity pants or his sweats over the past month. The maternity pants were comfortable enough in public, but around family and friends, I preferred his sweats or any other form of stretchy pants that Aunt Alice brought me.

"I don't mind the extras," he muttered, kissing my shoulder.

I rolled my eyes. "Of course you don't. Because a C-cup wasn't enough for you."

His eyebrows rose in surprise. "You're a D now?"

"Apparently."

"Mmm," he rumbled, lips still to my skin.

"Oh, shut up," I said, pulling gently out of his arms to go for a set of drawers tucked under a shelf. "Luckily, I thought to buy some bigger."

Pulling one out, I quickly switched them out. There, that was much better. Then I slipped into some stylish "exercise" pants with stripes on the sides and a sweater that hung off one shoulder. My hair floated out around my shoulders after I pulled it out of the shirt. Lately, I'd noticed that my porcelain skin was flushed, eyes bright. Jacob had asked Carlisle about it the day before when we'd had our monthly ultrasound that Jacob insisted on. My grandfather had said that it was the hormones and all the blood.

I was in my second trimester, and Carlisle said to start expecting movement from the baby. That was probably what I was most excited about, feeling him kick, feeling his life. So far, stretch marks hadn't made an appearance. Carlisle felt that that might be because my body didn't like change and would probably change as minimally as possible, just the necessities for the baby. My ankles had swollen a bit but Jacob rubbed my feet every night while we sat on the couch. A few aches and pains had started up, but nothing that the children's Tylenol couldn't fix. That would probably change though.

"You hungry?" Jacob asked, moving my hair and kissing my neck.

Lately, he'd been all about touching me in some way. Either his lips or his hands. Something was always touching me when we were together. He was getting more and more into the role of father. He'd even asked Shelby if she could go over the basics with us just to make sure we were doing things right. She'd had us practice on Brayden. He watched everything closely, storing it all away. He was going to be amazing.

We'd gotten the nursery done except for the crib. I was pretty sure we'd be getting that at the shower. Instead of a light blue for the walls, Jacob and I had decided on a darker blue, something warmer with light yellow accents. And of course, it was wolf themed. Paw prints and stuffed animals were everywhere. Grampa Charlie had even given us a dresser and rocking chair that had been used when my mom had been a baby to put in the nursery. I'd unpacked all the baby clothes that I'd gotten and ordered and put them in the drawers. In one of the shops on the rez, I'd found a wolf-themed mobile to put over the crib. Of course I'd had to have it. Everything was falling into place, and I couldn't have been more excited about it.

Sighing contently, I moved my head to give his lips more access. "What are you going to have for lunch?"

"I was thinking a sandwich with some of that lunch meat we got."

For the first time since I got pregnant, the thought of meat didn't make me queasy. Instead, I became ravenous, my stomach growling.

In the mirror, I saw Jacob's eyebrows meet his hairline. He chuckled. "Does that sound good?"

Putting my hands on my belly, I said, "Actually, yes, it does. Meat sounds delicious."

He grinned. "Well, alright then. Let's go try it."

Upstairs, Jacob made us both sandwiches. The smell of the meat wafted to my nose, making my mouth water...And the baby move.

I gasped, hands going to my stomach. It wasn't a kick or anything, but just like he was trying to find a comfortable spot. Kind of sloshy but also a flutter.

Looking over his shoulder, Jacob saw me holding my stomach and naturally thought something was wrong. He dropped what he was holding on the counter and knelt in front of me, eyes worried. "Ness? What's wrong?"

I smiled. "Nothing. He moved."

Jacob frowned. "What?"

"The baby, he moved. It was the strangest thing I've ever felt. But so cool."

"He kicked?"

Shaking my head, I didn't say anything as the baby moved again.

"No," I whispered, "but he's moving around inside me, Jake. Carlisle said to expect movement around this time."

Experimentally, Jacob put his ear to stomach. When the baby moved again, he jerked back and stared at my stomach and then up to me. Then he pressed his ear against me once more. It took about five minutes for him to move again, but when he did Jacob grinned.

"I can hear it. What's it feel like?"

I grinned, too. "Weird. Sloshy."

"Sounds like it. I could also hear your stomach growl." Hopping back up to his feet, he grabbed my plate and handed it to me. Then he went for the water in the fridge.

"Mmm, can I have some sweet tea?"

He looked over his shoulder. "Really?"

I nodded, mouth watering. "With a lemon."

He grinned. "You're eating again."

"Thank goodness," I muttered before digging into the sandwich, which was amazingly awesome. "Mmmm," I moaned. "So good."

Chuckling, he brought me the glass of tea with a slice of lemon. "That's good because we were almost out of blood."

Within five minutes, the sandwich was gone and I wanted another. While Jacob ate his, I made my second and scarfed it down at the counter. Now, full that I was, I sank back down in my chair and sipped the sweet tea.

Jacob just watched me with an amused look. "How does a steak sound for tonight?"

I groaned. "Fabulous. Medium-rare, juicy."

He got up to put his plate in the sink. "Good. We'll go into Port Angeles and I'll take you to dinner."

"Awww, I knew I loved you."

He chuckled and sat back down. "So, I'm off today. What would you like to do?"

"We should go down to the big house. Grampa and Sue are going over to visit. I'd like to see them." Leaning forward, I stroked his cheek. "And you should phase. You haven't in a while. Don't want you to start aging on me."

He nodded. "That's right. I haven't even thought about that."

"That's what you have me for."

He kissed my palm. "Well, if that's what you want, then that's what we'll do."

Thirty minutes later, I'd put on some boots and my coat, grabbing some clothes for Jacob that were nicer than ratty jeans so he could phase. Jumping off the porch, he changed forms. As soon as his paws hit the ground, he stretched as if the phase felt good. Laughing, I locked the door behind me and walked down the steps.

I scratched behind his ears. "Feel better?"

In response, he licked my face.

Laughing, I dug my free hand into his fur. "I will take that as a yes."

As we walked, it was so hard to believe that our baby would someday phase. Maybe. That depended on the vampire population. And I knew my family wouldn't be moving any time soon. My son would phase. Especially if our friends visited like they'd wanted to do for years but were too afraid to move because of the Volturi. Now that Jacob and I had cleaned house and made that deal with Aro, they were safe to travel. With their visits, more Quileutes would more than likely phase.

But just the thought that my son would someday walk beside me like this gave me the chills, in a good way of course. Jacob noticed and moved closer to me.

"I'm fine, baby. Just thinking about our son like this, in wolf form. How amazing he'll be walking in his dad's footsteps."

He whined a happy sound and rubbed his side against me.

"I know. I can't wait either."

When we got to the edge of the woods, he pressed his nose to my belly, gently rubbing his muzzle back and forth, before moving back. He phased back and put on the clothes I'd brought down.

Hand in hand, we walked into the house. Sue was in the kitchen with Mom and Esme. Jacob had gotten some of the wolves to stop in to give reports and such, promising food. Mom and Esme were happy to be useful.

"Hey, sweetie!" Sue said, coming to hug me awkwardly because her hands were covered in flour.

"Hi! It's been a while."

"It has. Now, take off that coat. Let me see the bump."

While I did as she asked, Jacob kissed her cheek. "Hey, Sue. It's good to see you."

"You, too, hon. And you should let your wife out of the house more often. Sunshine is good for her."

His eyes widened dramatically. "Oh my god! I am not holding her against her will!"

Laughing, Sue patted his cheek getting flour on his face. "I know that, Jake. I was joking, sweetheart. It's perfectly normal for man to want to keep his pregnant wife safe and way from everything dangerous. Harry was the same way. And your dad was the same with your mother."

"Really?" he asked sitting down at the breakfast nook in the kitchen.

She nodded, going back to pounding out some sort of dough. "Oh, yeah. Barely let her leave the house, especially with you. She was more active with only one baby in her system. With your sisters, she knew she had to be a little more cautious."

"I never knew that."

When she turned back around to nod at him, she saw me without my coat. Grinning widely, she washed her hands, dried them off, and came for me.

"Do you mind?" she asked.

I shook my head. "He's not kicking yet, though. I actually felt him move for the first time today before we came down here."

"It's a boy?"

I nodded. "I thought we told everyone. I'm so sorry."

"Oh, honey, don't be," she said, putting her hands on my stomach. "You're what? Four months? Five?"

"Four."

Cupping my face gently, she smiled. "And you are positively glowing! I'm so excited to see the two of you as parents. Jacob is such a good man. And you are absolutely wonderful."

"Thank you. That means a lot." Looking around her to Jacob, I said, "See? I told you we had tons of love and support."

He rolled his eyes. "I never said I didn't believe you. So, Sue, tell me more about my mom and Billy. He...doesn't talk about her much."

At that moment, Grampa Charlie came in. We said our hellos and he pulled out my chair for me. He sat down with us.

"He will, once Henry gets older," Grampa assured, clapping Jake on the shoulder.

"Yeah, well, I'd still like to know."

Sue finished up what she was doing and put the dough into the oven. Some kind of bread. When she was done, she washed her hands once more and then sat down in the fourth chair at the table.

"Your mom was one of my best friends. She was utterly beautiful. All the boys at school wanted to date her. Heck, they would have given a choice body part just to have her look at them. But she was all about Billy Black since the day they had fifth grade together. I'd thought it was just a crush because she wouldn't talk to him. He was the strong silent type, easy to smile. When he did talk, it always a joke or something witty. Sarah would just melt hearing that laugh."

Under the table, I took Jacob's hand while he leaned on the table, practically begging for more.

Sue laughed with remembering. "High school was a different story. We did a lot of growing over the summer before our freshman year. Sarah was gorgeous with that silky hair and those aqua eyes. Such contrast. And it turned the tables. I remember the first day of school when Sarah had walked past Billy without realizing he was there. She was chatting about her first class, but I saw it. He'd just stopped talking to his friend and turned toward her voice. After that, he pretty much stalked her. He was in woodworking class before lunch. Always in the cafeteria before us, he had time to leave little figurines at our table. Well, in her seat so she wouldn't have any doubt that it was for her. Finally, in our senior year, they had a class together and were partnered up for a project. Sparks just flew. By the end of the year, they were talking marriage. About a year after graduation, they were married. Nine months later, your sisters were born."

Sitting back in his chair, Jacob had a sad smile on his face, his thumb stroking my hand. "I never knew all that."

Sue reached across the table to take his free hand. "Your father was your mother's happily ever after. He was everything she'd ever talked about wanting in a man. If Billy had phased, there's no doubt in my mind he would have imprinted on her."

Jacob swallowed hard. "What about with me?"

She laughed, swallowing hard through her tears. "You...you were her pride and joy. She'd always wanted a little boy. Don't get me wrong, she loved Rachel and Rebecca something fierce. And she never played favorites with her children. But you," she laughed. "Before they even knew you were a boy, she'd rub her stomach, look at me and say, 'Sue, this baby is going to be a boy, and he's going to be a great man, do great things. Love a woman, protect her, protect his family. He's going to be as great as his father, a man of honor and loyalty.' You see, she knew what kind of man you'd be, even though she didn't know that she wouldn't be around to see it. I am proud to say that I have been able to watch you grow into the man she always told me you'd be. You'd have made her proud, Jacob. Her spirit is probably bubbling over with pride, and elation at you finally having a son of your own."

Squeezing my hand, he cleared his throat multiple times and wiped at his eyes.

"You were her baby boy, Jacob. She wanted so much for you. Not for your life, but for your character. Sarah knew she wouldn't have been able to control your life, but whatever you chose, she wanted you to be a good man while you did it. I think she knew that the pack would come back, that you would be called into the action. She always had that feeling of...greatness about you. She'd always call you her 'little wolf'."

Grampa chuckled. "That's right. I remember that. I was always confused when she said it."

"I remember, too," Jacob managed to choke out. "She would always call me that when she tucked me in at night."

Both Grampa and Sue nodded.

"And your mom for Billy?" Grampa continued. "Everything. In truth, he'd loved her the first moment he saw her that first day of school. I'd been up here at Forks High, but Billy and I were still close. He called me that day after school, sounded completely in love. He loved her unconditionally, like one of those Disney movies. Just _bam_! It was pretty impressive. Everybody that had seen them together wasn't anywhere near surprised of their wedding announcement."

Sue squeezed Jacob's hand. "We all miss her, and wish that she could have been here for this."

The man that had been drinking and driving that night had been in jail for years. He'd gotten out a few years ago. I vaguely remembered Jacob and Dad having an argument about Jacob going to visit the guy. Somehow my father had stopped him. I had agreed. It wasn't a good idea. Neither Billy nor the twins wanted anything to do with the guy either. It was best just to let it be.

"Yeah." That was all he said. Looking over at me, he gently extracted his hand from mine and pressed it to my stomach. "My little wolf," he whispered.

The baby kicked.

I gasped. Jacob's eyes widened.

"Are you okay, Ness?" Sue asked, eyes worried.

I nodded, covering Jacob's hand with mine.

"He kicked," Jacob answered her. "For the first time."

Grampa and Sue shared a smile.

He kicked again. Jacob laughed. "That's amazing."

"They'll get stronger as he grows."

Looking up, I saw my other grandfather standing in the doorway, grinning.

"Some babies get very used to the voices of their parents. I would like to assume that baby William is much like his mother in the higher senses department."

Jacob frowned a little. "Why not like me?"

"Because your higher senses didn't kick in until after you phased. Going by the phasing time line, William will be mostly human until he phases. But that would be with a human mother. His mother is half vampire, born with higher senses. If he takes after Nessie in that way, it would make sense that he's very used to your voices even though his thought processes aren't working yet."

Jacob shrugged. "Makes sense."

There was a knock on the kitchen door. Carlisle went to open it.

"Hey, Carlisle," Walker said as he and Christa stepped inside.

"Hello, Walker. Christa."

"Jacob said that you guys were missing the wolves and we were passing by on a patrol. Figured we'd stop in." And then she saw me and grinned broadly. "Hey. How are you feeling?"

"I'm great. He just started kicking."

"Oh, wow. Is he still-?"

I nodded.

"May I?"

"Sure."

Jacob moved his hands so Christa could replace them on my stomach.

"Wait for it...There it is."

She laughed. "Oh wow. Does it hurt?"

Shaking my head, I looked at Jacob. "No, not in the least, but that might change as he gets bigger."

Walker came up behind her, a question in his eyes. I nodded. He placed a big hand gently over me. When Will kicked again, he took his hand back and studied it.

"That is so wild."

"Isn't it?" I asked.

The oven dinged. Sue got up to take the bread out of the oven. "Okay, lunch is ready. Who's hungry?"

"I am!" I called.

Jacob gave me an incredulous look. "Ness, you just ate two sandwiches."

"I know, but I'm starving. And it smells so good in here."

"Wait," Carlisle said. "You ate meat?"

I nodded. "Two Jacob-sized sandwiches worth."

He looked to Grampa Charlie. "Any...other cravings?"

"Not yet," I said shaking my head.

He looked happy about that. "Good. I told you it would work out."

Standing up with everybody else, I dragged Jacob to the dining room, kissing my grandfather's cheek on the way out.

**WalkerPOV**

Ness was absolutely shining, almost like a star. Jacob was playing the infatuated dad instead of the nervous, worried one he'd been a month ago. It was clear that everything was sinking in for him. And I was happy for them. After all they'd been through to protect their families, they deserved one of their own. It still amazed me that the baby was okay after Ness going through that much trauma in the fighting. She'd saved my life. I owed her the time I had now.

Christa grinned at me as Ness skipped into the dining room. At least she was eating again. We'd all been slightly nervous about the blood intake.

Christa and I walked hand in hand into the dining room and sat down. Nessie was already digging into the chicken pasta and bread, groaning. Jacob watched her with raised eyebrows, more than likely wondering if she was going to get sick.

"So, are two planning on kids?"

Looking up, I found Sue looking at me expectantly. Christa gave me a look.

"Uh, well, we have Haleigh right now. And planning a wedding to appease my parents. But, yeah, Christa and I want one of our own."

Charlie frowned. "Appease your parents? You're already married?"

Christa nodded. "We married back in November before we adopted Haleigh. We wanted to do it right. But under the circumstances, his parents couldn't be there. They think we're just engaged and that our wedding is in November."

He nodded. "I see."

"Where is Haleigh?" Nessie asked.

"Oh, she's down with Claire. I swear those two are attached at the hip. But I love that Haleigh has someone like her. Of course, Xavier is with them when Quil can't be. He's bulking up nicely. Even has a girlfriend." She smiled over at Jacob, who tried to hold back his own grin.

Nessie looked between the two of them, smiling. "What? I haven't heard about this."

Jacob chuckled and wiped his mouth with a napkin. "Remember when I took him to get his permit? The girl I mentioned?" She nodded. "Well, she started coming into the shop after she had to bring her car in and saw him behind the counter. She's been bringing him lunch and stuff ever since. Her name is Shannon. Really sweet. Shy. But she has a temper when other girls eye her man."

"Sounds like most of the pack females," I muttered.

Christa kicked me under the table.

"What? It's true. If another woman hit on me, seriously hit on me, what would you do?"

She quirked an eyebrow and pursed her lips. "Good point."

Everyone around the table laughed.

Nessie rubbed Jacob's shoulder. "So you did help him."

He shrugged. "I did what I could. He did the work."

"She does make a mean potato soup," I said. When I felt Christa's eyes on me, I hurried on. "But yours is still the best."

"Uh-huh," she muttered, digging into her pasta.

Jacob laughed. "Walker, now would be a good time to insert your foot before you're digging your own grave."

Grinning, Ness patted his arm. "I'm sorry I doubted you. You are good with women."

"Told you so."

Sighing, Christa wiped her mouth with the napkin and started to stand. "Esme, Bella, Sue, everything was delicious. And this was fun, but we really need to get back out there."

Taking her lead, I stood up with her. "She's right. The food was awesome. Thank you."

I grabbed our plates and followed her to the kitchen. After cleaning up our stuff, I met her outside. She was standing in the woods behind the "changing tree" as we all called it because it was big enough to hide us while we stripped down or got dressed. Esme always left a few sets of clothes in men's and women's sizes behind it for when the wolves came around.

"So one of our own, huh?" she said, stripping out of the sweats. Esme would come to collect them after we left.

"I thought we talked about that?" I said, pulling the shirt over my head.

Naked, she pressed her body to mine. Bringing my hands down, I brushed them over her blonde curls. Her fingers played over my chest, breasts pressing into my upper stomach.

Her eyes were filled with heat as she stared up at me. "We did. It's just nice to hear you talk like that."

Leaning toward her, I said, "Then maybe I should do it more often. Might keep me out of trouble."

She chuckled as my lips pressed to hers. "Maybe. You could always try," she whispered against my lips.

"Mmm."

When I deepened the kiss, her hands slid around to my back, nails scraping over my skin. Going down, she burrowed those hands under the jeans I'd put on and gripped my ass. I growled into her mouth, making her moan. Her hands slid around over my hips and tugged the fastenings loose. The jeans fell down as she moved her hands back around shoving them down.

"Mmm, you like my ass, don't you?"

"Like? I love it. White boys generally don't have asses. But this one?" She squeezed hard, making me grunt. "Perfect."

Pulling away just a little, I shimmied out of the jeans and kicked them to the pile. "Come on. Another hour and we get to go home. Haleigh's spending the night over at Emily's with Claire. We have the house to ourselves."

"But until then, I get to torture my kind of wolf with hot thoughts of that ass."

Laughing, I likewise gripped hers, forcing her lower body against mine. My erection pressed into the softness of her stomach. "I think I can handle that."

Grinning with an evil glint, she shoved me back. "I wanna watch you shift."

"You always want to watch me shift."

"I know. I love knowing how strong you are. That you don't get weak from it anymore."

She was right. Over the past few months, I'd been practicing by myself, trying to commune with the wolf inside me. I realized that the less I fought it, the less it hurt as well as shifting more often. After a while it was more like getting tossed around in some waves instead of beaten to hell by a tornado. A little pain but faster than expected, I washed up on the shore. Caden had said that it was also because I was an alpha male.

Closing my eyes, I let the wolf free. Instead of using his body like a battering ram like he had when I'd fought the change at first, he slowly filled my body like water in a cup, stretching me out slowly. When I fell to all fours, he made the change as fast as possible, shredding my skin and muscles, popping bones and joints until I was a black wolf. Standing up on all fours, I was as tall as Christa. I shook out my coat as she came up to me, grinning.

"I love you."

Lowering my head, I nudged my muzzle between her breasts.

Moving away from me, she sniffed playfully. "I knew you only married me for my body."

I rolled my eyes, a human gesture she recognized. Yes, I did love her body. Every inch of it had been against my lips at some point. I knew every curve, every scar, and every freckle. Also all her hot spots, which I often used to my advantage. But in the end, I loved her heart, her soul. There was just a kind of quiet strength to her that had started to shine through after we'd gotten together, after she'd mended things with Morgan.

In a matter of moments, Christa was standing next to me in her wolf form, her furred side rubbing against mine, her nose nuzzling the side of my face. Turning, I licked her muzzle, cleaning her. Caden had said that our kind of wolf had certain instincts that paralleled with actual wolves. Cleaning your mate was a sign of affection. She ducked her head slightly, allowing me more access to her face. She knew I loved to do this.

After a long moment, playfully yipping at me, she hopped around, wagging her tail in the air. This was a game she liked to play to pass the time whenever we had patrols together, a game of tag.

Crouching low to the ground, I barked at her, telling her to go. She gave me a wolf-y grin and took off into the trees.

I gave her a couple minutes head start before darting in after her.

**JPOV**

"So," I said on the way to Port Angeles.

Nessie looked over at me with raised eyebrows. "Yes?"

Adjusting in my seat, I avoided her eyes as I admitted, "I invited Calahan, Emma, Walker, and Christa to join us for dinner. I wanted to have a chat with them without super hearing around. I hope that's okay?"

Reaching over, she laced her fingers with my free hand. "That's perfectly fine. It's a great idea for the leaders to have pow-wows every now and then. No offense."

The fact that she did that every time she made a Native pun amused me, like what she said would offend me. Rolling my eyes, I lifted her fingers to my lips.

"Just checking."

We met up with Walker and Christa in the parking lot of the nice steak house. Calahan and Emma had beat us all here, which was odd. We'd had the vehicles. I decided not to question it as I pulled Nessie's chair out for her and then sat down.

The waitress's eyes kept darting between me, Calahan, and Walker as she took our drink orders. Apparently she didn't know how to react to three attractive men. It wasn't vanity that I thought that. Secure enough in my masculinity, I could admit that the two other men were indeed attractive. And of course, I knew I was because of all the looks that I had to navigate through whenever I left the rez or Forks.

Emma growled slightly, glaring at the young woman when she failed to move away from the table fast enough after taking our orders.

The girl jumped, cleared her throat and scurried off. "Sorry," she muttered.

"So, Jacob," Calahan started, folding his napkin into his lap, clearly pleased with his mate's reaction. "What is it you wish to talk to me about?"

I did the same with my napkin before answering. "My wolves, Adam and Derek. And yours, Rhett."

He quirked an eyebrow questioningly as his face tightened up. He still wasn't too thrilled with them seeing each other.

Clearing my throat, I dove in. "Look, I know you don't understand the imprint. And I also know that you have...concerns about same sex couples in your community. However, it has come to my attention that the three of them would like to travel."

His lips were tight when he smiled. "Rhett went to you to ask for your help." A statement, not a question.

I shook my head, my gut clenching. "No. I offered my help. Please, don't blame him for this chat. All I ask is that you hear me out."

He was about to shake his head when Emma placed her hand on his shoulder. "Dear, we promised to try to be more open to these things. Let's hear him out as he's asking. It's the least we could do for him allowing us to stay on his land."

Swallowing tightly, Calahan gives a curt nod. "Very well."

I look to Emma. "Thank you." And then paused as the waitress came back with our drinks. She took our orders and went back to the kitchen. "Rhett explained how his traveling would affect the packs that he gets near, that they wouldn't see him as a threat because he's a beta." Emma nodded. "Personally, I don't see a problem with it as long as they're safe. It will give them time to cement the imprint."

"But what do I care of them cementing the imprint?"

Nodding in concession, trying to hold my temper in check, I continued down another path. "Okay, I see your point. But then my counter would be why would I care about a true mate?"

Scoffing, Calahan sipped his wine. He took a sip and placed the glass back down all without taking his gaze from mine. "A true mate? You mean mate_s _as in plural with regards to your wolves."

"I do."

"One of ours cannot have two true mates."

"And two of ours cannot imprint on one person." I held out my hands. "And yet, here we are. Calahan, I get your hesitation. I really do. At first, when Adam and Derek admitted to being gay, I blanched. It was something they'd managed to keep from me. But really, who am I to tell them that they can't love each other? Would you want someone to swoop in to tell you that you can't be with Emma? Nobody would keep me from Nessie. Period." Sitting forward, I put my elbows on the table. Rude, but I didn't care. Our food wasn't here yet. "Look, if you would have asked me if an imprint and lycanthropy could bring one of ours back to life, I'd have said no. But Seth is alive. Can we explain that? Not really. I've learned not to question these things anymore. Sometimes, things just happen. And we have to roll with it. Give them some time to be together. Please. That's all I'm asking."

Emma was still rubbing his shoulders, keeping him calm. I saw him reach under the table to stroke her knee. "You're asking me to treat them as I would want to be treated?"

Thinking in over, I nodded. "Yes. That's just called respect. If I were gay, I would be pretty pissed with someone telling me I couldn't see the person I loved. Hell, it could spark a rebellion. You'd lose wolves, many of them probably wanting to transfer to Walker's pack. Calahan, it's not like you're going to be involved in their relationship, just like I won't be. I'm just letting them be."

For a long moment, he sat there stiffly, Emma still draped over him. "I suppose I see your point. I will think on it, but I cannot promise anything just yet."

"You thinking about it is all I ask."

Emma clapped her hands. "Alright. You boys have had your chit-chat." She leaned forward gracefully. "Now, Nessie, you look positively ravishing, dear."

Flushing, she ducked her head sheepishly. "Thank you."

"And Christa, gorgeous as always."

Christa shared a look with Ness before smiling. "Thank you."

Emma beamed. Though she didn't look it, she older than the girls by quite a few years. As she watched them, she seemed almost motherly. "I am truly amazed at how you handle your packs. So...so kind. Gentle. Even with the females. Absolutely awe-inspiring."

Christa cleared her throat. "I don't want to sound rude, but...is it different with you and your females?"

All eyes went to Emma. For a moment, her lips pursed and then she smiled radiantly again. "Yes, it is. Many of the alpha females believe that Calahan and I are getting weak in our old age and think that their mates can take on Cal in a fight. So far, none have bested him. But that leaves the females quite furious with me now that their mates are dead. Should Cal die of _natural_ causes, Garrett will take his father's place as pack leader. He's being groomed for the position even now. Nobody can challenge him until he is of age. He has six more years to prepare."

Walker choked on his drink. "Of age for you means sixteen? I kind of put Garrett's age at around ten or so."

Emma nodded. "Sixteen is correct."

"Wait," Nessie said from beside me. "I'm sorry. Can we back up a little? Why are the females angry with you for their mates fighting Calahan and losing? Shouldn't they be mad at him?"

Giving a small, proud smirk, Emma winked at Ness. "Good question, dear. I forgot to mention that while the males duke it out, the females also have a fight. But this one is more a test of power, not brute strength. Even if her mate falls, the challenging female can still beat the alpha female, either proving she should be in the leader's bed, or completely killing the alpha female, taking her place. None of them have been able to take me down, so now they are humiliated and mate-less."

"So even if their mates die, they still have a chance at being either _an_ alpha female or _the_ alpha female depending on if the leader takes multiple females," Christa summed it up.

Emma's proud smirk turned to a grin. "Very good. That is correct."

At that moment, our food arrived. Steaks or chicken all around. I was still amazed at how much Nessie had eaten today, but she seemed perfectly fine and always hungry. Conversation died as we all dug in. Every now and then I would see Nessie jump from the corner of my eye.

The first time, I'd given her a questioning glance. She'd smiled, saying that the baby was kicking again, and that it had just surprised her. Emma had made polite chit-chat about babies and families, asking how my pack worked around that since my kind of wolf didn't age unless we stopped phasing. I'd told her that I'd probably end up stepping down when our son was ready to take over. Nessie had smiled at me, her hand squeezing my knee under the table.

Dinner passed with more chit-chatting and laughing. The women gossiped about us men while we sat there listening, rolling our eyes and protesting everything they said. It was actually kind of nice to come out and shoot the shit.

Eventually Nessie and I made it home.

While I was turned toward the door to plug in the code for the security system, I felt her hands on my shoulders, reaching for the lapels of my jacket. Even though I was confused, I moved so that she could slide the jacket off my arms. When I heard it hit the couch, I turned around to see her grinning at me, sliding out of her own coat. After throwing it on top of mine, she put her hands on my chest, fingers playing over my nipples through my shirt.

Looking down at her, I knew the look in her eyes.

I lifted my eyebrows. "Someone's feeling frisky tonight."

She chuckled sensuously. "You have no idea." Her hands moved over the muscles of my torso, outlining each individual one with her fingertips.

I got hard when those fingertips dipped below the waistband of my jeans.

Leaning over her, I hovered my lips over hers. "You sure?"

"You won't hurt the baby. He's too far up. We're safe."

"Okay," I whispered before pressing my lips to hers.

I guessed my libido was attached to hers. These four months, I hadn't felt one lustful bone in my body. I hadn't even gotten hard. Maybe in my sleep, but not awake. But with that look in her eyes, I was ready and willing in a heartbeat. Backing up toward the stairs, she pulled me with her by my jeans. Even down the stairs, she managed to keep one hand gripped on my waistband. And before I was off the last step, she was pulling my shirt up.

I took it the rest of the way off when something warm and wet caressed my skin. Looking down, my gaze met hers while her tongue licked a slow line from the top of my pants and up to my collarbones. Heat flooded through me even though I shivered violently. Reaching down, I gripped the hem of her shirt and lifted it above her head.

I couldn't help but salivate over her chest. I was a man after all. Her breasts had gotten heavier. I knew that the nipples were now a darker shade of pink as well. Her four month baby bump was big enough that her jeans no longer fit, but small enough that she could still bend over slightly and see her toes.

Putting her fingers back into my jeans, she backed up until her knees hit the foot of the bed. Sitting down, she unhooked my jeans, shoving them roughly down my thighs. I stepped out of them, kicking them away.

"Scoot back," I told her. "I know how I'm taking you tonight."

Crawling backward toward the headboard, she smirked at me. "A man with a plan. I like it."

This time, I couldn't actually lay on top of her the way we usually did because of the baby bump, so I needed to find a way to not crush her. I had an idea and we were about to test it. On all fours, I crawled over her, just staring down at that sexy smirk and the fire lighting up her eyes. Her hand snapped up to latch around my neck, pulling me down, her lips crashing over mine like she was hungry for more than food.

I kissed her lips with the same urgency. But soon I pulled away from her to kiss down her chin, jaw, neck. The sloping out of her chest where it filled the bra. And then down between her breasts, pressing soft kisses over her sloping stomach where the baby was kicking. Surprisingly that didn't deflate my lust. I just continued on, nuzzling her panties down. Hooking my thumbs into them, I slid them down her smooth legs.

Not up for oral tonight, I moved back up her body. She was reaching around to unhook her black bra, but I shook my head. "Keep it," I said roughly. "Tonight it's turning me the fuck on."

Planting her teeth into her lip, she stroked her hands up my arms, over my shoulders, and over my neck to lace her fingers together. Which was good. My arms were going to be braced on the headboard. Scooting so that my knees were under me, her thighs spread out over mine, I could see her core wet and wanting, weeping for me. The sight made me growl, knowing it was me she wanted.

In this position, I could watch as I guided myself to that soaking entrance, watch as the head of my shaft disappeared inside her. It was enough to make my back clench up hard.

Her back arched off the bed as I slowly entered her, watching myself slide inside to the hilt. I never realized how much I stretched her when we did this. Watching now, I wondered how her body accommodated me. I wasn't small. And for a woman, she was slight, narrow.

On the pillow, her head tilted to the side, eyes watching me from under those long lashes. Her lip was between her teeth as she rotated her hips around me, circling her body around mine.

"You like that, don't you?" she said in a husky voice.

"What?" My voice was just as rough.

"Watching us, your body inside mine."

Swallowing hard, I scrubbed my lips with one hand, using the other to lift one of her legs up from behind the knee as moved in and out of her.

"I fucking love it." Growling, I hitched both of her legs up, signaling I wanted her to squeeze me with her knees, holding on, as I leaned forward to grip the headboard. "And I fucking love taking you, making you mine."

Chocolate eyes flared, crackling with lust.

With that, I thrust into her deeper, harder, using the leverage the headboard gave me. There was no more talking after that. In this position, my waist and hips stayed off of her stomach, not crushing the baby. Instead, my hips slapped into her thighs, her knees gripping my sides. Her hips came off the bed to meet me thrust for thrust. The pounding became so intense that the frame of the bed moved with us, my knuckles cracking against the wall. But I didn't care. My suppressed sex drive came roaring to the forefront. It was hard to believe that Nessie and I hadn't had sex in four months after making love pretty much every day since we'd started. Or even some petting and touching.

All of that was getting dusted right here and now.

Nessie reached up to grip my wrists, needing something to hold onto while I kept my grip on the headboard. Holding on as tightly as I was, my fingerprints were probably getting engraved into the heavy wood.

"Yes, Jacob," she breathed. "Yes, please...so good. Touch me, _please_."

She was ready to come. And so was I. Lower body clenched up tight, the only thing that kept me moving was the momentum I already had. The only thing that kept me from climaxing was the fact that Nessie hadn't yet. It felt a thousand times better to come when her body was milking mine, those walls closing around me.

So I did as she asked, as she begged.

Reaching a hand between us, I pressed that magic bundle of nerves at the top of her core with my thumb, hard and forceful. Her free hand dug into my chest as she screamed her pleasure to the ceiling. That glowing body jerked while those inner walls clenched around me, fisting me.

And that was it for me. That was my ecstasy.

My orgasm punched out of me, hot jets shooting into her. To keep from falling on her, my teeth gnashed together and my hand tightened on the headboard, making it creak as my body went rigid with my explosive release. Grunts punched out of my throat.

When it was over, I sagged, my head hanging down. Despite the fact that I was on my knees, they were trembling. Nessie was blissed out, her eyes closed, lip between her teeth, a small, very pleased smile on her face.

And then she frowned, opening those gorgeous eyes. "You're shaking." Lowering her legs, she slid her body off of mine and to the side. "Here, lie down."

Following the lead of her hands on my sides, I collapsed to the bed beside her. On her side, she reached out to stroke my sweaty face. She was just as sweat-soaked but somehow it was dainty whereas I felt like I'd just worked out in a gym and then went to work in the garage.

Ness smiled gently. "I think you wore yourself out."

Weakly, I moved into her touch, brushing my lips over her palm. "No, I think I kept it in for too long. That was pretty...forceful. Are you okay?" I asked softly and it wasn't the same question I'd asked before. It was about more than that. I didn't want anything to be too traumatic in case it triggered something, like early labor. I'd heard of it happening before.

"I'm perfect."

Sighing in relief, I couldn't help but to pull her against me, to hold her, to make sure that I hadn't broken her. That was the fear that plagued me the most, hurting her. I'd never do it on purpose. But accidentally hurting her would kill something inside of me. Exhausted, she snuggled into my side, sighing happily. Reaching up just long enough to grab the sheet, I pulled it over her before collapsing back against the pillows.

"Jacob?" she asked, half asleep.

"Yeah?"

"I love you. Very, very much. And I'm thankful that you're in my life every single day. I don't know what I'd do or be without you. And I'm incredibly proud of you. All the time for everything you do." She patted my chest. "Just wanted you to know."

To that, I really didn't have an answer; she wasn't looking for one. She'd just wanted to tell me what was on her mind. And then, out of nowhere, images started flashing over my vision. Realizing it for what it was, I closed my eyes to give the images a better backdrop. It was Nessie. Her mental wall had crashed and those images were being passed onto me through her touch.

She was thinking, probably dreaming, of the baby, of William. A layer of excitement painted the images as she imagined holding him for the first time, of me holding him. They moved on, as if she were watching a home video of him growing up, what she thinks it will be like. I expected the other kids from her previous dream to show up, but they didn't. It was only Will, for now. The only one she could really grasp now that she was pregnant with him.

Grinning, tucking her close to me, I fell asleep with her dreams as my own.

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><p><strong>Some of you were asking for a lemon from our favorite couple and I decided, what the hell? So there you go! Hope you liked it. Tell me how you feel! Love love love reviews because you guys are awesome! Love you! xoxoxoxo<strong>


	5. Chapter 5

**Yeah, so I didn't write much on the baby shower only because I'm not too big on the girly stuff. I'd have preferred to hang out with the guys. But some drama happens that I didn't foresee until I started writing. And-and-and, I had forgotten something MAJOR until I thought I was done with this chapter and then remembered that it was JULY! That means a WEDDING! No huge details though, but it's still sweet. Or I thought it was. No lemons. Sorry. But hey, the next chapter? Um, we're having a BOY! Bwahahahahahaha!**

***Disclaimer***

**Please Enjoy!**

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><p><strong>July<strong>

**JPOV**

"Jake?"

"Hm?"

"Can I talk to you for a sec?"

Looking up from my menu, I met Xavier's bright green eyes. He looked a little tense. We were sitting in one of the diners on the rez while Nessie's baby shower was in full swing up at the house. Shannon, Xavier's girlfriend, was sitting across from me in the booth.

I looked to her.

She shrugged delicately. "I'll tell the waitress we need a moment."

Shrugging myself, I scooted out of the booth and followed him outside.

"What's up?" I asked, crossing my arms over my chest.

Before turning to face me, he let out a deep breath. When he did turn, he looked bothered, frustrated, and terrified all at once.

Going up to him, I put a hand on his shoulder. "Xavier, talk to me. What's going on?"

He met my eyes. "You can't say anything. Especially to Shannon."

"Okay, I swear it. I won't say anything. Now spill."

"She's it."

Confused, I said, "Who's what?"

"Shannon. She's my true mate. That's why I'm so into her, why I have been from the beginning. It's a pull in my gut to be near her." Clearly on edge, he spun away from me, hands going to his hair, tugging.

"Okay, so what does that mean?" Something was getting lost in translation since I wasn't understanding his disquiet.

He blew out a frustrated breath, like he wanted to hit me, like I was being dense. "That means I have to tell her about me," he nearly yelled spinning around, and then he lowered his voice talking between his teeth, "that I'm a werewolf."

Now I understood. "You don't have to tell her immediately. You've only been dating a few months."

"You don't understand. I can't keep this from her. She's starting to get suspicious, Jacob. I don't have parents or a home to take her to. She's wondering if there's something wrong with her."

Putting my hands on his shoulders, forcing him to look at me, I said, "You have time, Xavier. She's not going to break up with you anytime soon. I do see your point, though. We'll figure out a way to...Xavier?"

He'd gone rigid, eyes glaring through the window of the diner. Turning, I followed his gaze. Shit. Some guy was talking to Shannon, leaning his hip on the booth beside her. She wasn't even looking at him, a bored expression on her face while she studied the menu and he tried to gain her attention.

My grip on Xavier tightened as he started to growl. The fact that Shannon was uninterested was a saving grace.

He shook his head, forcing himself to stay put. "It's the full moon. It's too close. Anger brings the wolf." Closing his eyes, he swallowed hard.

"She's not interested in him, giving him the cold shoulder. Just breathe. Calm down. She'll kick him to the curb."

He opened his eyes. "I'm good. I'm alright."

Until the kid twirled one of her curls around his finger. That's when she looked up, glaring at him.

Xavier saw it, a vicious growl ripping through him, eyes flashing. It unnerved me how fast the calm had been overtaken by the rage.

Before I could get a better grip on him, Xavier tore out of my grasp and practically ripped the door off its frame. I'd caught a look at his eyes before he'd put me at his back. Amber. That other kid was in deep shit.

Rushing in after him, I got to him just as he pushed the other guy so forcefully that he hit the ground and slid all the way down the aisle, slamming into the wall with enough force that the tiles cracked. Grabbing Xavier as he tried to launch himself at the other guy, I wrapped my arms around his chest and wrestled him toward the door. His growing fangs snapped and snarled as the guy sat up gingerly as if in pain.

The other customers panicked. Women were screaming or gasping, looking on in fear. People rushed out of their seats. Xavier watched them in full predatory mode. I could feel it. I could feel the wolf taking over his personality, turning it to something cold and calculating.

"It's okay," I ordered angrily to all the people inside. "He's new to the pack. Just stay where you are."

When I spoke, they listened. The diner went quiet and eerily still. Sometimes, it was good to be alpha, good that they saw me as chief.

I'd learned that with his kind of wolf, the anger would turn into a free for all, no longer focused on the person originally intended, but could spread to anybody the wolf found nearby. I'd rather it be me than some innocent bystander caught in the crossfire.

The last thing I saw before I threw Xavier out the door was Shannon's wide, fearful eyes as she stared at her boyfriend, his face contorted into something unrecognizable by his rage.

As soon as we were outside, he had more room. He used it to swing away from me. Facing me, he went into a crouch, those amber eyes alien. We were in the street now, people stopping to stare as we faced off. Sliding out of my jacket, I threw it to the bench on the sidewalk.

"You want someone to fight? Here I am."

I figured that I could take him. As clear-headed as I was, I could think. He was lost to the wolf. The one thing I did worry about was how strong he was with the wolf so close to the surface. He may not have been as tall as I was, but he had gained a lot of muscle in the past few months, bulking up tremendously. If he got his arms around me, he could crush my bones, just like what had happened years ago with that bloodsucker.

Predictably, he rushed for me. To my right, the tree line of the woods between here and Forks began. If I could get him there, he could shift and run out this temper tantrum.

Stepping aside, I grabbed for his arm as his momentum rushed him past me. Finding purchase around his wrist, I congratulated myself too soon. He swung around, snarling, the claws of his other hand ripping down my left arm leaving deep gouges in the muscles. Growling through the pain, I used my handle on his wrist- which I thankfully hadn't dropped- to twist him around, pulling the arm up sharply to the middle of his back. Using my injured arm, I gripped the scruff of his neck. He was as immobile as I could get him.

"Into the woods. Now!" I commanded as I marched him to the treeline. People from the diner and other shops had flooded outside to see the show. I paid no attention to them, all my focus on the wolf in front of me.

After a few yards, we made it to the trees. I shoved him away from me roughly.

"Shift, Xavier. Get it out of your system because you're not going back into my town with a bad attitude."

From the ground, he just glared up at me with those alien eyes.

My alpha-ness moved to the front of my mind and with "the voice", I ordered, "Now, Xavier!"

Even though he wasn't my kind of wolf, he recognized that I was an alpha and giving him a direct order. Slumping, he ripped off his jacket before moving to his hands and knees. In front of me, he started to shift. Bones cracked through the skin, muscles seeing the light of day as they slid back over the re-knitted bones. Sick sucking sounds came from his body as well as more snaps, crackles, and pops. Nowhere near as smooth as Walker's or Caden's, but that could have been because he was fighting it.

Behind me, something crashed through the woods. A moment later, someone practically ran into me. Shannon came to a complete stop when I held my good arm out to stop her. When she saw Xavier writhing on the ground, she gasped, hand going to her mouth.

Finally, after several minutes, a charcoal wolf stood in front of us. He was big, his head reaching my collarbones. Amber eyes studied me before looking sadly to Shannon. He hunkered down, ears flat to his head, tail between his legs, whimpering slightly as she moved to hide behind me.

"Go, Xavier. I'll take care of her. Go to Calahan."

After a moment, he turned and took off into the woods. I felt Shannon's small, shaking hands grip the back of my shirt. Damn. She shouldn't have had to find out this way. Turning in her grip, I wrapped my good arm around her, pulling her to my chest. She buried her face and sobbed.

"It's okay. Let me go get my jacket and I'll take you home."

"No! I want to to stay with you. And I have your jacket. I dropped it."

Looking down, I saw it at her feet. Gently extracting myself from her, I picked it up and held it away from all the blood seeping down my left side.

"Okay, come on. I need to get my arm stitched up before I lose too much blood. I'll explain after, alright?"

She nodded, eyes on the ground.

As we started walking, her arms wrapped around my right arm and didn't let go until we made it up to the Cullen house. She was numb by then and let me go to sit on the couch.

"Shannon," I said, kneeling in front of her, using my jeans to help catch the blood. When she looked at me, I said, "I'll be back in a few minutes, okay? I've got to make a call and get fixed up. You're safe here. No harm will come to you. If someone asks, tell them you're here with me. If you want, you can tell them what happened. This is a safe place. Do you understand?"

After a moment, she nodded. "Safe place," she whispered. "Got it."

Giving her a small smile, I put a hand to her hair. "We'll figure all this out." And then I stood up to go in search of Carlisle.

**RPOV**

It was the day of my baby shower, and I was about to collapse with exhaustion. Shelby, Cricket, my mother, and my aunts had stayed after to help clean up. Jacob was spending the day with Xavier and Shannon, Xavier's girlfriend, teaching them how to drive and such.

Sitting down heavily in one of the dining room chairs, I watched as Esme bustled around my kitchen packing up the leftover food. As expected, I'd gotten the crib Jacob and I had picked out. Well, two of them. One for the nursery in our bedroom, the other for the nursery upstairs. Pacifiers, clothes, bath supplies, bedding. All of that and more had been gifted to us, as well as several wolf-themed items. Blankets and a play pen.

May and June had gone by much the same as April. As the weeks passed, Will's kicks and punches had gotten stronger. The aches and pains budding into something that the children's Tylenol wouldn't touch. Jacob spent an hour every night massaging my shoulders, lower back, and hips as well as my feet and ankles. He was heaven-sent.

Will had grown so much that I now couldn't see my feet unless they were propped up or I leaned over really far. Thankfully, though, my breasts hadn't grown anymore. That would have sucked royally.

Carlisle had changed the due date to late September, early October. Hopefully, I'd go into labor naturally instead of being induced. Jacob and I were already prepared, though. He'd packed a bag of clothes for the three of us, and I'd packed the other baby necessities so that we could stay down at the house for a couple days. Carlisle would want to make sure that Will and I were okay after his birth.

During the past two months, Jacob and I had also gotten another of the upstairs bedrooms ready for Will. We were hoping for a time where both of us would be ready to let him sleep in his own room.

With a little more energy in me from sitting down, I managed to push myself out of the chair and waddle over to the basket of neatly folded baby clothes. Grabbing it, I made my way to my bedroom. Shelby followed with Brayden. The patter of little feet followed her. We both turned to see Leila making her way to us. She'd turned a year old in June and was walking on her own. A little clumsy, but she still made it.

Emily ran up behind her, scooping her up. "No, no, Leila. You can't go down those stairs by yourself."

She giggled in her mother's arms.

"She's getting so big," I said, smiling at her.

Emily gave me a tired but happy smile. "She's everywhere. Gyms are for pansies. I'd love to see someone else run after this one. I can barely keep up with her. Lost ten pounds since she's been walking."

"Something to look forward to," Shelby said, nudging me. "Brayden's already started pulling himself up to standing with the help of our legs or the furniture. He'll be walking soon, I'm sure."

"How old is he now?" Emily asked.

Shelby hefted him up on her hip. "Nine months."

Between them, Brayden and Leila reached out toward each other, gripping hands. The three of us, in unison, muttered, "Awww."

"Let's not let Henry see this. He'll have a fit," I said, reaching into my pocket for my phone so I could send a picture to Jacob.

Lately, Henry had been all about Leila. He'd turned six just before she'd turned one. And when she'd started walking, he'd shadowed her. For a six year old, he was all about protecting her. He was conscious of walking between her and anything she could fall over. And if she did fall, he helped her back up. He also kept her from the stairs. We were all fairly certain that a romance was inevitable with the two of them.

Speaking of, he must have woken up from his nap because he appeared beside Emily, gripping her leg and craning his neck to look at Leila. She looked down at him and giggled. Emily set her down on her feet. Immediately, Henry was there, holding Leila's hand.

"Come on, Leila," he said, now able to round out his words. "Let's go play."

Slowly, he led her back to the living room to sit in front of the fireplace where most of the toys were.

"That's so cute," Shelby said.

Emily laughed. "Yeah, Sam is already planning 'the speech'." She made the quotations in the air with her fingers. As if she realized that I was carrying the basket of clothes, she frowned and reached for it. "Give me that. You don't need to go down the stairs holding that when you can't even see the stairs."

Smiling graciously, I let her have it. I'd gotten used to being doted upon. Besides, there was no use fighting with her when she was right. It had gotten to the point where I needed to hold onto the railing whenever I used the stairs, a feeling of lost equilibrium that made me uneasy. When we got down into the bedroom, Shelby sat Brayden down on the bed, where he immediately started to crawl over the blankets. She followed him around, arms held out, just in case. Emily sat the basket on the bed. Brayden went for it, grabbing the edge of it, trying to get his legs under him. The bed was too soft and he couldn't manage it. Shelby helped him up. He grinned at me over the basket while he bounced up and down.

Emily and I worked the new clothes into the drawers in the nursery and the new blankets on the end of the changing table. The crib had been collapsible and Aunt Alice had already brought it down, setting it up. After pulling the bedding out of the basket, I decided to go ahead and set the bed up. Emily helped me figure out the locks on the side of the crib so that I could moved it down and actually reach the mattress. The sheets were dark green. Already picturing Will to look like Jacob the way Brayden looked like Seth, I imagined the color would look wonderful against my son's dark skin and hair.

A light hand rested on my shoulder.

"He'll be beautiful," Emily assured me.

Blinking at her, I frowned. "Did I just-?"

She nodded. "Yeah."

I shook my head, looking inward. Sure enough, my mental wall was down. "Sorry. It's getting harder to control."

Laughing, Emily bent over the mattress to finish smoothing out the wrinkles. "Don't apologize, Ness. It's fine. It's a part of who you are. Besides, some things, you shouldn't control. You're pregnant, close to the end of the pregnancy. You're excited to meet your son. Perfectly normal, I promise. My last couple of months, I was so impatient to meet Leila. I just wanted my baby girl in my arms after years of trying to get pregnant with her. She was my little miracle."

Rubbing circles on my huge belly, William kicked out against my hand. Smiling softly, I asked, "Do you think you'll ever have more kids?"

Once she stretched out the last wrinkle, she straightened up and sighed. "Honestly, I don't know. I want more, at least one more. Sam and I aren't...feverishly trying at the moment, not like we did when trying for Leila. Besides, I'm older now. If it was that hard to get pregnant with Leila, I can only imagine how hard it would be for another baby plus the pregnancy and birth. I've heard it's not easy for older women."

It was my turn to pat her shoulder. "You're strong, Emily. You could do it."

"You think?"

"I wouldn't have said it if I didn't mean it."

Her smile was radiant. "That's why I love you. You're always bluntly honest."

I shrugged. "Eh, saves time."

She tilted her head in concession. "That's true."

"Uh, I hate to interrupt."

Rachel was in the doorway, phone in hand. She waved it. "Just got off the phone with Jake. He tried to call you but you didn't have your phone on you. He's down at the Cullen place getting stitched up."

I was instantly alert, blood turning to icy slush with panic. "What?! What happened?"

She quickly backtracked. "He's fine, just a few deep cuts."

When she didn't start explaining, I stepped forward. "Rachel." Her name was a demand through my clenched teeth.

She shared a look with Emily. "Apparently, some kid made a pass at Shannon. Xavier got pissed and started shifting. Jacob pulled him into the woods to keep from creating a scene." She lifted a hand. "And before you ask, he didn't phase because he didn't want Xavier's wolf to see him as a threat. That's why he got scratched up."

Breathing deeply, trying to calm my heart, I tried to focus on the whole picture. Jacob was alive and apparently fine. No need to worry over him. "What about Shannon?"

"Down at the house, too. Shaken up."

Brushing past Rachel, I went for the stairs. "Well of course she is. She didn't know. Xavier was waiting to say something until he was sure about her."

"She knew about Jacob."

"Yeah, because she's from the rez. Jake and the pack 'came out' a few years ago."

Emily, Rachel, and Shelby followed me up the steps. As I went for my coat and the front door, I said to the others, "I'm heading down to the house. Jacob got hurt and I need to check on Shannon. Poor girl must be freaking out. Not to mention she's down there with a bunch of men."

Mom smiled at me. "We'll finish cleaning up."

"Thank you. I really appreciate it. All that you guys did today. It was great. I had fun."

Her smile widened as she shooed me out the door. "Go."

Rushing out the door, I was joined up by Adam, Derek, and a smaller wolf I could only assume was Rhett. He was honey-colored with gentle green eyes.

"Hey, guys. I need to go down to the house. Care to join me?"

The three of them gave me wolf-y smiles and wagged their tails.

"Thanks," I said, taking that to be an affirmative.

We made it down to the house in record time with me being pregnant. Derek had stayed close to me, letting me use his body to steady myself as we made our way down the incline. When we got on level ground, I moved faster, busting through the front door and shrugging out of my coat at the same time. Moving into the living room, I tossed it over one of the recliners.

A small red-haired girl was sitting on the edge of the couch, back ramrod straight, ankles crossed, her fingers tightly interlaced in her lap. She couldn't have been more than sixteen. Though she was looking down, her eyes were unfocused, shock-y.

"Shannon?" I asked gently as I moved toward her.

Blinking rapidly as though my voice had pulled her out of her thoughts, she looked up at me. Her eyes studied my face before moving down to my stomach. Moving some magazines aside, I sat in front of her on the coffee table.

"Hi, Shannon. I'm Nessie, Jacob's wife."

"Jacob?" She blinked like a deer in headlights.

I nodded slowly. "Yes, the man who brought you here? Jacob. He's my husband."

"You're very pretty," she blurted. And then seemed to realize it. "I'm so sorry. I don't normally...I'm not that forward."

Leaning forward, I placed my hand over both of hers where they were still gripped tightly in her lap. "It's okay. You're in shock. But thank you. You're pretty, too. I see why Xavier likes you so much."

Her eyes widened, the name obviously bringing back the memories. "Xavier...he-he just..."

"I know," I said softly. "Take a deep breath for me, okay? Just breathe slowly."

She did as I asked, shoulders moving heavily with her deep, even breaths. At first they hitched unevenly, but when I started to breathe with her, they evened out.

I smiled encouragingly. "That's it. Good. Now you won't hyperventilate."

"Thank you," she said almost too quiet to hear.

"You're welcome."

Her gaze moved back down over where my hand rested over hers. Though her hair covered her eyes from me, I knew she was crying because her tears dripped off her nose to land on the back of my hand. I let her get it out. It was scary stuff what she'd seen today. Her shoulders moved with the silent sobs.

And then, almost as if she were angry with herself for crying, she moved a hand out from under mine to roughly swipe at her eyes. "I'm sorry. I don't usually cry. But knowing about it and seeing it are two very different things. And Xavier, I know he's not from the rez so...he couldn't be one of the pack." She lifted her head so she could meet my eyes. "Right?"

I took her shaking hand in both of mine. "Not part of Jacob's pack, no. Xavier is...a different kind of werewolf. Have you ever heard of lycanthropy?"

She shook her head.

"It's a disease, an infection. With the Quileute wolves, the wolf is in their genes. Xavier, on the other hand, probably survived an attack of some sort from another werewolf. His kind are called Children of the Moon. I'm going to guess that he became so angry that another boy was attempting to flirt with you that he shifted. The full moon is only a couple days away."

The expression on her face made it seem like she was startled. "He...he started...for me?"

It made me laugh. She wasn't concerned that her boyfriend had turned into a giant dog, but that he'd done it out of sheer protectiveness. "It makes sense," I managed after the giggles had passed. "In the animal world, males are very protective of their females, especially if it's a monogamous type of animal, like a wolf."

Swallowing hard, her eyes moved back and forth as if she was sorting through information. "So...he considers me his?"

"I'd say that's pretty clear after today. Wouldn't you?"

She smiled a little, and it transformed her face. She was the type of girl who didn't smile often, probably because she was shy and withdrawn. Jacob had talked to me about her. He'd always felt good about being able to make her crack a smile. He'd said that Xavier was pretty good at it, though.

"I guess this means he doesn't suffer from commitment issues."

We both laughed.

"The Children of the Moon have this thing called true mates. If Xavier is that protective of you, I'd wager a guess in that he thinks you're his."

"But we've barely been dating," she said in bewilderment.

I gave her a look and a shrug. "In our world, that's just a number, Shannon. Jacob and I didn't date, just spent every waking moment together. I'm his imprint."

"But they don't have imprinting, do they?"

I was about to answer when another voice stopped me.

"No."

Shannon's hazel eyes widened, and I turned on the table to see Xavier in the foyer looking past me to her from the doorway. His green eyes shined with worry through his sandy hair that laid over his forehead. A grey tank and open flannel shirt displayed the white scars over his tanned skin that ran from jawline to disappear under the shirt.

He swallowed hard. "For us, it's more like a gut feeling."

When he moved into the living room, she tensed gripping my hand hard, but he proceeded anyway, kneeling down beside me.

"Xavier," I said with caution. "Are you okay?"

He nodded. "I'm good. Calahan calmed me enough to turn me back."

I nodded. "Okay."

His green gaze moved back to the scared girl on the couch. "Shannon, I am so sorry. I meant to tell you. Really, I did. That's what I had wanted to talk to Jacob about outside. I was just...scared, I guess that you would be too afraid of me."

"I was scared today," she whispered.

Standing up, I moved so that he could take my place. He gripped her hands in his, holding them against his chest. "I know, and I hate myself for that. I was just so angry, seeing him near you, touching your hair. And it's so close to the full moon. The wolf inside me wasn't happy either."

Behind them, Jacob came down the stairs quietly. He and I met eyes. His left arm was taped up with white gauze from shoulder to wrist. The worry came back, pitted in my stomach.

"Does..." Shannon started, swinging my attention back to her. "Does your wolf," she shivered, "so weird to say, but...does he claim me?"

Tentatively, as if he wasn't sure of his welcome, he brought a hand up to her hair, to stroke it. When she didn't pull away from his touch, he ran his fingers through it, and nodded. "Yeah, he does."

"What does that mean for us?" she asked, leaning into his touch.

He smiled. "It means I get to try to explain things to you, maybe introduce you to my pack. I know you've been wondering why I don't introduce to my parents or take you to my house. The truth is, my parents are dead and I don't live in a house. I live in a tent in the woods with my pack." He cupped her cheek. "It wasn't that anything was wrong with you. I just had to tell you about me before introducing you to my family. And you've already met Jake. He and Ness have been really good to me even though they're having their own baby."

"You consider Jake family?" I couldn't help but ask.

Apparently, I broke the spell. He looked at me and nodded. "Yeah, like a brother or uncle. Probably brother. I've always wanted an older brother."

"Well, you got one," Jacob said, speaking up for the first time.

Xavier hadn't noticed him standing there until he spoke. Getting to his feet, he looked over at Jacob in horror.

"Jesus! What the hell did I do to you?" he gaped as he went to stand in front of Jake.

Jacob shrugged. "I'm okay. Just a bunch of stitches. I've had worse."

"He really has," I said, grinning.

"But...but-" Xavier spluttered.

"Really," Jacob said. "I'm fine. The gauze is just to keep from ripping up the stitches. The cuts will be healed in a day or so. Consider it a sparring match."

His shoulders slumped. "I'm so sorry, man."

Jacob put a hand on his shoulder. "Listen, it's okay. We'll talk to Walker and Caden about teaching you some control, alright? We should have thought about that before training you."

"Calahan helped me calm down and forced me to shift back. I've never felt anything like it."

"Well, I'm sure Walker wouldn't mind you talking to Calahan if that's what you wanted. Anything to help you. You're not alone in this. We'll take care of you. And I won't let anything happen to Shannon."

Xavier laughed once. "You really sound like a big brother."

Jacob shrugged. "I have two older twin sisters. Plus, I learned from Sam. He took care of the rest of us when we phased. He was alpha for a while until I took over my birthright. I learned a few things."

Shannon stood up to stand beside Xavier. He draped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her into his side. She rested her head on his shoulder.

"Well, thank you. For what you did today. I was seriously going to kill that guy. I don't remember much, but I do know that."

I walked over to Jacob. He took me into his arms, placing a kiss to my hair. I rested my head against his chest.

Jacob held out his good hand. "I know. That's why I felt it was better for you to fight me instead of him. He didn't stand a chance."

Xavier reached around Shannon to take that hand. "Thanks."

"Nessie?" Shannon asked quietly.

"Yes?"

Her hazel eyes met mine. "You're not human...are you?"

Jacob and I shared a look before I decided, what the hell. "No, I'm not. Well, not completely."

She nodded as if she'd just needed confirmation and then shook her head. "I don't want to know. I think I've had enough revelations for one day."

We all chuckled and Xavier pressed a kiss to her hair.

"Let's get you home, okay? You didn't eat anything and you're still in shock. You need food."

"Good idea," Jacob said.

"What about your truck?"

"I'll get my brother-in-law to pick it up. He has a key." Jacob dug into his pocket for his phone. "I'm going to have one of my wolves go with you just in case you have another...moment."

Xavier nodded. "Good idea."

Jacob put the phone to his ear. "Hey, Lucas. Are you close to the Cullen place?...Good. I need you to go with Xavier and Shannon back down to the rez. It's close to the full moon and Xavier is having difficulties reigning in his wolf...Good deal. See you in a minute."

Not even a minute later, the kitchen door opened. Lucas and Morgan both came into the living room, hand in hand. We all chatted for a moment before Xavier and Shannon left to get some food in her system with Lucas and Morgan at their backs. Jacob and I headed for home after he helped me into my coat. I carried the leather jacket I'd gotten him for Christmas. Derek, Adam, and Rhett followed us all the way up to our porch.

"Thanks, guys," Jacob said. "We're good so go find something else to do," he said playfully.

Yipping and barking, the three of them took off into the woods.

Jacob shook his head. "Crazy animals."

Without warning, I punched him in the stomach. He grunted and stared at me. "What the hell was that for?"

Unlocking the front door, because everybody had obviously left, I glared at him over my shoulder. "You scared the hell out of me. I thought something...ugh. You just scared me."

Once we were in the house, our coats hung up, Jacob took me into his arms. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you. Rachel wasn't supposed to say anything too terrible."

"She didn't. I just...when she said you were getting stitched up, I just got this horrible image in my head."

Cupping my face, he kissed my forehead. "It's okay. Just a scratch. I'll heal."

Sagging, my forehead sank against his chest. "I know."

"So," he said, clearly changing the subject, "what did we get today? Or, I should say, what did Will get today? Not even his birthday."

That made me laugh. Will kicked furiously. "We got our cribs, and-"

"Cribs?" he interrupted. "As in plural?"

"Yeah. One for the nursery downstairs, and one for his nursery upstairs. We couldn't use the guest crib. It's a guest crib."

"I suppose. What else?"

"Clothes, bottles, toys, bath supplies, bedding, blankets. Pretty much everything we need. We're set."

"Show me. I wanna see."

Grinning, I grabbed his hand and pulled him downstairs. It made me ecstatic that he was that much into this. A lot of guys, after hearing the list, would be like "cool, what's for dinner?" Not Jacob. He wanted to see every little thing that would be our son's, everything that he would wear, sleep on, or drool on.

He loved the sheets on the bed, especially after I showed him my thoughts from earlier, the ones that Emily had seen.

"You really think he'll look like me?" he asked quietly.

I shrugged, rubbing his back. "I think that your genes are probably more dominant than mine. The curly hair might peek through. Maybe. I wasn't that great at biology. But yeah, I do think he'll look just like his daddy. I hope so."

He frowned. "Why not you?"

"Because I look in the mirror every day. I want to see my son as a reflection of his father. The wonderful man that you are, strong, handsome. My two men." Chuckling, I rubbed my stomach with my other hand. "Now I know how Shelby feels. Her two men. My two men." I remembered how she'd once described Seth and Brayden to me and repeated it to Jacob. "My king and my prince."

He turned to me with a smile. "King, huh?"

I rolled my eyes. "Of course you'd hang onto that one." Going up on my tiptoes, I gently kissed his lips. "But, yes. My king."

He kissed me back. "If we have that little girl, she better look like you for the same reasons. My queen and my princess."

"Boy, you sure do know how to make a woman weak in the knees. Queen, huh?"

Chuckling, he sank to his knees in front of me, hands gently holding my stomach. He pressed his lips to me. "You need to hurry up, son. Your mommy and daddy can't wait to meet you," he whispered.

I fell in love with him all over again in that moment.

**A couple weeks later...the end of July.**

**TriciaPOV**

Ohmygod, ohmygod, ohmygod!

Pacing in front of the mirror in my and Embry's bedroom, I shook out my hands, my wedding dress trailing behind me. I had yet to put the veil in my hair, but I was shaking too badly.

A knock came at the door.

"Who is it?"

"Nessie. Can I come in?"

Flying for the door, I nearly ripped it off the hinges, so happy to see her. She'd quickly become one of my best friends, almost like a sister. We talked every day either through text or a good old-fashioned phone call.

Nessie's eyebrows met her hairline. "I take it you're a little nervous?"

I let out a shaky laugh that sounded a touch hysterical. "A little? No, not at all." And then I looked at her to give me something to do. She was draped in an elegant red goddess-like dress, her bronze curls rounding out the look of divinity. Even through the dress, her baby-filled belly was easily seen. "You look amazing," I said, starting to calm down a little from her calm company.

"Thank you." Holding out her hands, she clasped mine and came into the room, dragging me with her, kicking the door closed as she moved. "And look at you! So gorgeous."

"I feel like Barbie. Even look like her. I look like the ice princess."

"Nonsense! You look beautiful. We should put your veil in, though. It's almost time."

"Have you seen my mother?"

She nodded, going for the garment bag. "Yeah, she's making sure everyone gets seated."

"And my dad?"

"Waiting down the hall. And before you ask, Embry is already waiting at the altar for his bride."

Stopping in front of the mirror, I met her eyes in the glass. "He is?"

Grinning, she nodded and lifted the comb of the veil. I tilted my head back to she could slide it in. "Yes, he is. And he looks just as nervous as you do. Which is stupid," she added in a hard, firm tone.

Blinking, I said, "What?"

When I tilted my head back up, she put her hands on her hips, emphasizing the baby bump. "You and Embry. It was just like when Rachel married Paul. She was nervous. What, like he was going to run away? Please. They're imprinted men. Out of the couples, it should be them who are nervous because it's the women who get to choose." Gripping my shoulders, she turned me to face her. Her eyes were warm, like melted chocolate. "Tricia, sweetie, there's no need to be nervous because he sure as hell isn't going anywhere."

"Were you nervous?"

She shook her head, curls brushing down over her shoulders. "Not once. Wanna know why?"

I nodded desperately.

"Because I love Jacob. And he loves me. Period."

Frowning, I shook my head. "I don't understand."

She sighed. "Think of it this way. He imprinted on you, loving you instantly. You fell in love with him because he's always been what you needed when you needed it. That won't change after you say your vows, Tricia. What will change is your relationship. My dad told me just before my wedding that marriage means that your relationship is no longer an adolescent, that it's now bloomed into adulthood. This, today, is your starting line to the rest of your life. With Embry. You're vowing to be there for him no matter what, even though that's probably something the two of you have said to each other in private. But this wedding is a declaration, not just to him, but to the world, to those who are going to be here, that this is the man you are willing to give your all to, everything you are, and everything you will ever be. He's doing the same thing, telling the world that you're his woman, that he will do whatever it takes to protect you, to love you." She smiled at me. "You love him. He loves you. Period."

Leaving me to think about what she'd just said, she went to the shoe box next to the garment bag.

I turned back to the mirror and stared at myself. Nervous. Why was I nervous again? I couldn't remember. Was it because I was scared Embry wouldn't be there? Or was I scared of something else? And then I thought back to the day I'd thanked him for letting me move in, for taking guy space. He'd seemed taken aback by that as if he hadn't thought of it that way. And he truly hadn't. He'd told me he'd waited for years to imprint.

Standing a little straighter, I studied myself. His wife. Our relationship had grown in the last few months. We'd gotten into a steady schedule. Embry going to work, me keeping up the housework and bills. I'd even opened up a saving's account. Every week I'd do the grocery shopping and made sure there was food on the table when he came home. After dinner, he'd make love to me so many times that it was all a blur when I finally laid against his chest and fell asleep, his lips pressed to my skin.

Staring at myself, I realized Nessie was right. Embry and I had long ago married our souls. Today was our declaration to everyone else, sealing our commitment.

Nessie knelt in front of me as best she could, setting my shoes at my feet. She smiled up at me. "Ready?"

Slipping my feet into my shoes, I nodded. "Absolutely."

Another knock sounded at the door.

"Trish? It's me. Walker."

"Come in." Even my voice sounded calm, steady.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Nessie smile smugly.

The door opened and Walker slipped in. I couldn't help but laugh. He looked handsome enough in his crisp tux, but he'd done nothing with his hair. It wasn't slicked back or anything. Just falling into his eyes as usual. So totally the brother I knew and loved.

Coming at me, he grinned. "God, you look amazing," he said, pulling me into his arms.

Nessie cleared her throat and went for the door. "I'll go get seated, let them know you're almost ready."

"Thank you, Nessie."

She grinned before slipping out the door.

Laughing, I smoothed down his lapels. "You look pretty sharp yourself, big brother. I love what you did with your hair."

He grinned crookedly. "Eh, well you know. Had to stay original in this penguin suit. Can't let anyone think I'm being tamed."

"Heaven forbid," I mocked.

Running his hands down my arms, he gripped my hands, getting serious. "You okay?"

I nodded. "I am now. Nessie has a gift with words, I'll tell ya."

"He's getting pretty nervous out there. It's kind of nice to watch him squirm."

"Walker," I scolded.

"What?" He shrugged. "He's marrying my baby sister. Gotta have a little fun." He put his hand to my cheek, getting serious again. "I'll always be your brother, Tricia. Always. No matter what happened in the past. So if you need something, anything..."

I covered his hand with mine, fighting tears for fear of ruining the make-up Mom had put on me. "I know-I know that. I'll always be your sister."

"I love you, okay? I'll do anything for you."

"Same here, Walker. I love you, too."

"Crazy ride, huh?" he said with a choked laugh as if he were fighting off his own tears.

Sniffling, I laughed, nodding. "Yeah. And it's not over yet."

"Amen to that."

For a long moment, we just stared at each other.

Another knock at the door, this time soft.

"Aunt Tricia, Daddy, the music started," Haleigh said.

Walker cleared his throat. "Thank you, baby girl. We'll be out in a second."

"Love you, Daddy!"

We both grinned.

"Love you, too."

"She's adorable. I can't wait til she gets married."

He growled a little. "Don't even go there," he said paternally.

I grinned again. "You're adorable, too. The dad suit looks good on you."

He rolled his eyes. "Thanks. It feels good. Well, I better go before Embry comes looking for you." Leaning in, he kissed my forehead. "Congratulations. I'm happy for you, baby sister."

And then he was gone, leaving the door open. Dad stepped into the doorway and stared at me. This was the first time he'd seen me in my dress.

He grinned, though his eyes were shiny. "You ready? Your music is coming up."

Grabbing my bouquet, I went to follow him out. We moved in silence to the sliding glass doors that opened up to the backyard. No longer nervous, I slid my arm through his and breathed in deeply.

"Nervous?" he asked.

I shook my head. "Not in the least."

"Good. You look beautiful."

"Thank you, Daddy." Tearing up again, I turned to him. "I wish Mom were standing here, but I'll say this to you anyway. Thank you for adopting me, for giving me the great life you have. If it weren't for you, I never would have turned into the woman I have. I wouldn't be this strong. I wouldn't know how to fight for what I believe in. And if you hadn't brought me to Forks, I never would have met Embry, my future. I owe my life and my love to you. Both you and Mom. But also, thank _you_ for giving Embry a chance. I know he was rough and aggressive with you, but I think he's been better."

Dad smiled down at me. "He has been, and I can see what you see in him. He was protecting you from me. I get it. After meeting a lot of his friends, I see that aggression when they're with their wives. Especially Jacob and Seth with Nessie and Shelby."

I nodded. "Yeah, they're all like that. It's a tribe thing, just the kind of guys they were raised to be. But still. Thank you."

He kissed my temple. "He loves you. And you love him. I didn't want to see it when you looked at each other, but I could only ignore it for so long before your mother pointed it out to me that she still looks at me the way you look at Embry. After that, I couldn't deny it. Because I saw that he looked at you the way I still look at your mother even after all these years. I love her more now than I did the day I married her. And I think the same will happen with you and Embry."

Outside, my music started up.

Choking back my tears while Dad opened up the sliding glass door, I whispered, "I love you, Daddy."

"I love you, too," he said as he started walking us out.

The backyard had been turned into one of the most magical places I'd ever seen. Twinkle lights were everywhere, looking like fairies in the trees. My accent color was a deep sapphire blue. Ribbons and flowers were hung everywhere. Alice had really outdone herself.

But the one thing that held my attention was, obviously, Embry. He was standing at the make-shift altar of giant logs. His tux was crisp, fitting him like a well-tailored glove. His bow tie was the same color blue as the accents on my dress.

As I approached him, he grinned, eyes shiny. His expressions kept changing though because he was trying to hold back his tears. Eventually, he gave up, pressing his thumb and forefinger into the corners of his eyes, his throat working nonstop. After a moment, he took a deep breath and opened his eyes once more. Dad and I had made it to him. Holding out his hand for mine, Dad unhooked my arm from his and placed my hand in Embry's.

As was usual for a bride and groom, we didn't once look away from the other as the preacher started up. When the time came for our vows, we'd decided to write our own.

Embry went first.

"Well," he started. "What can I say? Here we are." While everyone chuckled, he took my hands in his. "Tricia, when we first got engaged, I really didn't think that this day would be as emotional as it very obviously is for me. But standing here, looking at you, at how beautiful you are, I just really can't believe that we're here, that you're here with me. I never thought I'd find my soul mate. I thought I'd have to settle. But then you came along and completely changed everything. I truly love you more than words could ever describe. At first, I was scared of these feelings, because every time I've loved someone, they always left me, so I thought it was better not to care. But you," he laughed, "you just barged your way into my life and demanded a spot, demanded my attention. You've always somehow known what I need and never questioned it. You gave me whatever I needed. Whatever it was from your heart and your soul. You've given me the greatest gift that a man could ever ask for: a woman who will love him yet keep him in line. I couldn't think of anything else to ask for from you, except this, to be my wife. I promise to always protect you, to always take care of you, and to love you no matter what life throws at us. I will always fight for you. And I don't want you to ever doubt that."

When he was done the preacher looked to me, but I had to take a moment to dab the corners of my eyes and choke through my emotions. His last two lines were words he'd said to me before, after I'd told him how much his standing up to my dad and Walker had meant to me.

Clearing my throat, I squeezed his hands. "Embry, you sure know how to take my breath away," I started in response to his vows. The guests laughed. "But really, before we met, I felt lost, disconnected from the world. I didn't really feel like I had a purpose but to get up and go to school, not making a lick of difference to anybody or anything. Then, the most beautiful thing happened. You knocked on my front door." The women in the crowd sniffled. "I never told you this, but the first moment I saw you, I felt motivated like I had something very important I had to do. After our first meeting, every time I saw you, the feeling tightened in my heart, urging me to be close to you, to seek you out. Sometimes, you'd pull away from me. So, I forced myself on you, pushing things too fast to get you to understand that I wasn't going anywhere. Where you went, I'd follow. I didn't care if I hadn't known you a week. You quickly became my world, and I knew someone or something had broken you. So, here, today, my declarations to you are that I will spend the rest of my days trying to pick up the pieces that someone else left behind; I will love you until and long after you heal from those wounds; and I will _always_ give you my all, give you everything you need from me. I love you, and I am honored and proud to call you my husband."

He'd teared up again, his eyes wide to keep the tears from falling. The preacher went on about the rings and such.

And then:

"By the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife." He looked to Embry. "You may now kiss your bride."

As everybody cheered, Embry swept me into his arms and pressed his lips to mine. I wrapped my arms around his shoulders right before he dipped me, grinning against my mouth.

Both of us laughing, he tilted me upright once more. We faced out to the crowd.

"Ladies and gentlemen, it is my honor to present to you Mr. and Mrs. Embry Call!"

The cheering became louder. Walker whistles between his fingers. Mom dabbed at her eyes. Nessie was rubbing her belly and grinning at me, winking when she met my gaze. Deep into the woods, howls broke out, startling people at first. To me, the chorus was beautiful and perfect.

"I love you, Mrs. Call," Embry whispered down into my ear.

Grinning over at him, I kissed his lips gently. "And I love you, Mr. Call."

He waggled his eyebrows at me. "Let's go have some fun, shall we?"

And that's exactly what we did. We danced, laughed, and partied throughout the night, taking pictures between dances. Cutting the cake and eating dinner. The speeches were sweet and tear-inducing. It was hilarious watching Nessie and Embry dance together. He held her so gently that she fussed at him. Jacob and I had shared a few dances before Haleigh had demanded his attention. I'd danced so much with Walker and Dad that I'd had to take my shoes off as blisters had started popping up. But it was still fun to twirl around with them. Mom and I had shared tears.

Overall, it was perfect. My last dance was shared with my husband.

At the end of the night, since we weren't going on a honeymoon (our choice), and after everyone had left before coming back in the morning to take down the tents and tables, Embry and I had changed into normal clothes and sat down on the couch. The house was quiet, lit only by candles, as I rested against his chest, playing with his wedding ring. It was platinum per Alice's demand that I pick whatever I wanted. Just a simple band.

"It feels so different," I said. "Being married."

"Yeah? How so?"

"I feel...older. Like...like I've shed my cocoon. Your vows, they made me see myself differently, as if I've actually made a difference."

His lips were soft in my hair. "You have, Tricia. My world was empty. Now, it's full of so many promises. I just can't tell you how much you mean to me, how much you've changed me."

For the millionth time that day, I teared up. "I won't ever leave you, Embry. I could never bear to hurt you."

"I know. And I won't ever leave you. I'd rather die."

Craning up, I kissed the underside of his jaw. "Our starting line," I whispered.

"What?"

Shaking my head, I smiled. "Nothing. Just remembering some inspirational words from a certain alpha female."

He nodded as if he understood. He probably did.

That night, we fell asleep on the couch, in each other's arms.

I wasn't sure about him, but as for me? I dared to dream big about our future, about our starting line.

* * *

><p><strong>You can be honest, that wedding section was off, but hey, I didn't want it too opulent because I didn't want it to contend with Ness and Jacob's. Duh. These stories are about them after all. But hey, drop me a review or a PM! They really keep me going, giving me that oomph to update more often than once a month! Love you guys so much! xoxoxoxoxo<strong>


	6. Chapter 6

***SQUUUUUUUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE* So excited! Although I do feel weird about this chapter, like I probably messed up a lot, but...I'm so happy with the outcome. I did do a little research, but also tried not to make the labor textbook because this a half vampire woman we're talking about. So yeah...I know you've all been waiting for this! And there is more to come from baby Will and daddy Jacob. I promise!**

***Disclaimer***

**Please Enjoy!**

* * *

><p><strong>Late August<strong>

**Monday**

**JPOV**

"Again?"

"Yes, again. Help me up," Nessie demanded, waggling her fingers at me as I came around the couch.

Gripping her hands, I pulled her up onto her feet. "This can't be normal. How can one person pee that much in one day? You haven't even drank that much."

Without even answering me, she scurried off to the bathroom under the stairs. Over the past couple of days, that's what she'd been doing, running off into the bathroom. She'd gotten so big in the past month that I had to help her out of bed and off the couch. Her aches and pains had gotten worse, as well as her breathing. Carlisle said it was because the baby was pressing on her organs, especially her lungs because he was so high up. He also said that once the labor kicked in, he'd drop down and relieve the pressure. I knew Nessie couldn't wait for that. She'd also started experiencing heartburn. Her first time ever. To nobody's surprise, she hated it, popping Tums all the time.

Sitting heavily on the couch, I flipped on the tv. Today was one of my days off at the shop, Frank coming in to cover me. He'd been doing that a lot, probably because the pregnancy was coming to a close. He'd shooed me off with paid vacation days. Seriously, that man was amazing.

Nessie came out of the bathroom and around the couch frowning, her hands on her swollen belly.

The wolf and male in me went on instant alert. "What's wrong?"

"I don't know. Does...does the bump seem...lower?"

Frowning, I looked down and actually studied her. "Um, actually, yeah. I guess. How's your breathing?"

Experimentally, she took a deep breath. "A little better actually."

I thought back over everything that Carlisle had gone over with us a week ago after getting so close to the due date.

"So, what does this mean?" I asked.

She shrugged. "I guess I should start looking for labor signs. Carlisle said that when the baby started dropping, I could start having contractions. Not to mention the frequent trips to the bathroom? I think we're getting close."

When she sat down, I pulled her into me and kissed her temple. "Let me know any little thing, okay?"

She nodded against my shoulder. "Jacob, can I tell you something?"

"Of course, baby."

"I'm scared." Her voice was barely a whisper. I hated that she sounded so tiny

"Of what?"

"The labor. I mean, just remembering watching Shelby give birth to Brayden was painful. You'll be there, right?"

Pulling back, I looked down at her, raking my fingers through her hair, wondering how she could ask me that. Instead of asking, though, I said, "Of course I will. Every step, I'll be there. I'll call Frank and let him know that I need some time just in case. He'll understand."

"Not immediately. Just because he's dropping a little doesn't mean that he's coming yet. Maybe we should go talk to-", she hissed, her hand going to her stomach.

"Ness?"

Shock replaced the worry on her face. "I think that was a contraction."

Instinctively, I looked at the time on my watch and remembered it. If she was going to start contractions we had to keep up with the timing. Carlisle had been very specific about that. Depending on how regular they were would depend on if we needed to get down to Carlisle.

"You okay?" I asked.

She nodded. "Yeah. That was...weird. What time?"

"Twelve-thirty." Pulling up my contacts, I found the shop's number and hit it. "Hey, Frank. It's me, Jake."

"Hey, Jake! Everything okay?"

I hugged Ness tighter to me. "Well, she's started having contractions. I think it's a good idea that I sit out of the shop for a few days, like a week or so."

Papers shuffled in the background. "Oh, absolutely. Take as much paid time as you need."

"Frank, seriously. No. We'll be fine."

His tone became stern. "Jacob Black, I won't hear of it. Think of it this way: you've racked up about two months worth of paid vacation over the years you've worked for me. I'll put it in as overtime, which you've also racked up."

Sighing, I said, "You're not budging, are you?"

"No, sir."

"Why?"

"Because you're a good man, Jacob. With a good wife, and a son on the way. Besides, you're the best mechanic I've ever had here at the shop. And you taught all the boys. When I retire in a couple years, this place will be yours. I wouldn't leave it to anyone else. And because someone once did something generous for me. I'm just passing it along."

"Fair enough, I guess. Thank you, Frank."

"Not a problem, son. Now, go take care of that beautiful wife of yours."

"I will."

Nessie was smiling when I hung up. "He's sweet."

"He is." Sighing, I just couldn't let it go. Leaning forward, elbows on my knees, I said, "Ness, you asking if I'm going to be there with you actually bothers me. Why on earth would you think I'm not going to be there when you give birth to our son?"

Not meeting my eyes, she played with the hem of her shirt. "It's not that I think you won't be there. I guess I just needed some reassurances."

Looking back at her over my shoulder, I reached for her hand. "Renesmee Black, I would never leave you like that. I'm not one of those men, one of those husbands. You're not just a trophy wife or a woman to bear my children. You're the love of my life. I'm scared, too. I mean, I've heard about some of the complications of giving birth, and I am terrified that something will go wrong. But then I think that we're in capable hands. Carlisle knows what he's doing. And you're his granddaughter. He'll do whatever it takes to keep you and the baby safe. Shelby and Brayden came out just fine. And no matter how many babies we have, I will _always_ be there."

Leaning forward, she put her forehead against my shoulder. "I know that. I'm sorry."

"We'll get through this, meet our son, and laugh that we even had this conversation."

She choked out a laugh. "Yeah. Probably. I think I'm going to go lay down. I'm kind of tired."

"Do you wanna lay here on the couch?"

"Will you lay with me?"

"Of course."

Even her smile was tired. "Okay, then."

We rearranged ourselves after I turned the lights down and built up the fire. She laid over my chest, her stomach resting partially over my waist. Will had gotten so big that Nessie practically waddled everywhere, and she was tired all the time even if she got a lot of sleep. It was all a part of the process apparently, but that didn't mean I had to like it.

Sighing contentedly, she fell asleep almost immediately. I tightened my hold on her before forcing my eyes closed.

**RPOV**

Around midnight, I woke up to my bladder yelling at me and heartburn eating up my throat. Rolling out of bed, I padded to the bathroom. After taking care of the first problem, I went up to the kitchen and chewed up some Tums. Yech. After I had Will and this heartburn disappeared, I was tossing those damn things out of my house. I could always buy more when we got pregnant again.

As I was turning away from the counter, another contraction hit. It wasn't painful, but it sure as hell wasn't comfortable.

"Ow," I whispered, breathing through it. "Come on, Will. Mommy's ready when you are."

"Ness?"

Looking up, I saw Jacob standing in the doorway that led down the stairs. He'd slipped into his jeans but left them undone.

I smiled tiredly. "Heartburn. And another contraction."

"Ness, that's your fourth one."

I nodded. "I know."

After the first one, I'd had two more that had pulled me out of sleep over the course of a few hours. The last one had been at around nine at night. Jacob had called Carlisle, who had assured us that we were okay for the night. If it persisted into the morning, we should grab our stuff to head to the house tomorrow, today, whatever.

Across the space, he and I met gazes. This was it. If the contractions kept up and sped up in frequency, we'd be meeting our little boy in a matter of a couple days.

"You think you can get a few more hours sleep?" he asked softly, eyes on my huge stomach.

Sleep was already sucking at me, my bones and body heavy. So he knew I was telling the truth when I said, "Yeah. As long as the contractions don't get any stronger, I can get a little more sleep."

**Later Tuesday Morning**

**JPOV**

Ness was in one of my huge t-shirts and a robe while she laid back on the bed, her legs up in the stirrups. Carlisle was doing an internal exam to see where Will was. Her contractions had started getting more frequent and more painful.

"What's going on, Carlisle?" I asked impatiently.

Frowning with concentration, he pulled back and snapped off his gloves. "As far as I can tell, your son is coming and very quickly. The first stage of labor should have lasted more than just a few hours. But you're already dilated to about five centimeters. Your contractions are increasingly more painful and frequent. Are you feeling any pressure to push or bear down?" he asked Ness.

Before she could answer, her jaw clenched and she squeezed her eyes closed. Her fingers clenched around my hand painfully. Another contraction. Only fifteen minutes from the last.

She nodded eventually. "Yeah."

"Don't. I need you to wait until you're more dilated."

"How long will that be?" I demanded.

"Jacob, I don't know. Sometimes the labor can just stop at this point."

Nessie collapsed in exhaustion against the bed. "Please don't tell me that."

Carlisle chuckled. "I understand, Nessie. Your water hasn't broken yet. Walking around can sometimes help the labor along if you're feeling up to it."

Nessie immediately went for the idea. "Yes! Yes, please, Jacob. I can't just lay in here waiting. Let's walk around the house."

Nodding, I helped her situate herself and get off the bed. She moved slowly, her teeth gritted. A steady calm had come over me as we'd grabbed the bags of clothes and baby stuff and headed down here. This was it. (Hopefully). Everybody was waiting on news. Shelby was camped out downstairs with Bella and Edward. Nessie didn't want her dad in the room assisting when she went into labor because that would just be awkward. If he was in the room at all, he'd be up at her head with me. Esme was going to assist Carlisle with the birth.

Slowly, we made our way down the hallway. I was nervous about her walking the stairs, but she insisted. Carlisle just shrugged.

A couple hours passed by with us just walking around the ground floor. Eventually, she shooed me away so she could talk to Shelby, Christa, Emily, and my sisters. Carlisle and I watched her, keeping track of her contractions.

For now, they were still spaced about the same. Now more than ever, it was a waiting game. Knowing Carlisle had everything under control, I went to sit in the empty dining room where we'd put the bags. Digging into one of them, I picked up a onesie that Nessie had bought. The one that said, "Daddy's Little Cub".

I didn't know how long I sat there, staring at the small piece of clothing before I heard a throat being cleared. Several of the guys were standing in the doorway.

"You mind if we join you?" Caden asked, his amber eyes glowing in the dark room. I hadn't bothered to turn on the lights.

Clearing my throat, I motioned to the table. "Sure. Not sure how good of company I'll be but..."

Chuckling, Caden sat down across from me. "Nervous, huh?"

I shook my head as the others sat down around the table. "Not about the baby anymore. I'm just worried about the labor. So ready for that to be over. Seeing her in pain like that bothers me."

"Amen," Seth muttered.

"Nessie's tough, Jake," Embry said, clapping a hand on my shoulder.

"And that's why women bear the children instead of us," Caden said. "They are much tougher than we are."

All the men nodded in agreement.

Haleigh walked into the room and went straight for Walker. He picked her up and sat her in his lap. "Hi, Daddy," she said, resting her head against his shoulder.

He kissed her hair. "Hey, baby girl. What's up?"

"Miss Esme and Miss Bella are making lunch. They said it will give them something to do."

"Okay, sweetheart. Thanks for telling us."

She nodded importantly. "Mhm. And they said all the boys need to wash up."

That made us laugh. But we did as she said only because she was watching us closely, her eyes narrowed. Nobody wanted to face the six year old little girl's wrath. As soon as I sat back down, Christa and Morgan were helping Nessie into the dining room. The skin around her eyes and mouth was pinched like she was in pain. More contractions. I held my arms out and they helped her up onto my lap.

Sitting sideways, she rested her head under my chin and rubbed her stomach. "I'm not hungry, but I'll sit with you while you eat."

I kissed her forehead as Bella set a plate of chicken in front of me. "Thanks, Bells."

She smiled warmly before kissing Nessie's hair. "How are you feeling?"

Nessie shrugged. "Like I'm totally ready to get this over with. I don't like the waiting, the anticipation. I just want to move."

"It'll happen, sweetie."

The front door opened and a moment later, Charlie and Sue came into the dining room. They looked at Nessie with sympathy, Sue more so than Charlie. She understood after having two kids.

"So, nothing yet?" she asked gently.

Nessie shook her head against my shoulder. This was the way she used to sit when she was smaller and wasn't feeling well. She'd cuddle up in my lap and tuck her head under my chin, looking pitiful. "Just progressively more painful contractions."

"Have you dilated any?"

"About seven is what Carlisle said."

As if her body knew what she was saying, she tightened up, squeezing her eyes shut. Yet another contraction, but this time she couldn't hold back the whimpers of pain or the harsh gasping.

I rubbed her back as soothingly as I could, feeling like shit that I couldn't take the pain for her.

Through her teeth, she said, "That was the worst yet." There were tears in her voice.

My gaze found Carlisle's where he was standing in the corner, keeping an eye on his patient. "How long?"

"Dropped to ten minutes," he said, looking at his watch. "I think we should get her back to the room. She may have dilated more."

"But-" Nessie started.

Carlisle gave her a level gaze. "If the contractions have leveled out to ten minutes or less apart, we need to get you prepped for labor. I know you hate laying around, but as your doctor that's what I advise."

After a moment of deep breathing, she nodded. I'd lost my appetite so I scooted the plate to Paul who was more than happy to eat my share.

"Good luck," Sue whispered as she helped Ness off my lap.

It was as I was scooting the chair out more to have room to stand up that Nessie crumpled around her stomach, one hand holding it while the other gripped the table. She let out a yell as her water broke.

Carlisle was there a moment later, swinging her up into his arms.

"Is that normal?" I demanded as I followed him at a run up the stairs. Nessie was crunched around her stomach, breathing through her teeth, making it glaringly obvious that she was now in constant pain.

Carlisle flew into the room and laid her gently on the bed. It was already tilted up into a reclined position. He lifted her legs into the stirrups before slipping in an IV and a heart monitor onto her finger.

"Normally the ten minute or less contractions last a lot longer," he said, slipping in his gloves. "But this isn't a human birth. Remember that Nessie's body is different." With that he, ducked under the blanket he's thrown over her legs. Esme came in and scrubbed at the sink before putting her own gloves on.

Nessie's small hand slipped into mine, squeezing hard. She was in severe pain, tears streaming down her face. "I want to push, Carlisle."

He came back up to look at her. "Not yet. I need to see how dilated you are. Just breathe, okay? Slowly. I know it hurts. We can still give you the medicine."

"No! No medicine. Just do what you have to and tell me when."

He nodded, eyes slipping into concentration as he went to work. "You're getting very close to ten, but Will is ready to come. He's bearing down. That's probably where all the pain is coming from." He looked to me. "Jacob, talk to her. Calm her down or she'll panic and start pushing. She's not quite ready yet. More pain she doesn't need. Esme, close the door please."

Just before she did, Bella and Edward stepped inside. Edward came to stand just above the head of the bed while Bella moved to the other side across from me to stand next to the machines. While he waited for the last centimeter so her cervix was completely open -he'd tried to explain things to me, but I was still confused about a woman's anatomy- he worked on cleaning her up from her water breaking.

Nessie hand tightened on mine again. "Jake," she squeezed out.

I turned so that my back was to Carlisle and made eye contact with my wife, trying to keep her distracted. I gave her the best grin I could with my heart thrumming in my throat. "Hey, sweetie. It's okay. You're doing great, but you gotta breathe for me, okay? Remember?"

She grinned tiredly. "Don't talk to me like I'm a crazy person, Jake."

That made me laugh. "Well, breathe right and I won't."

"Deal."

Slowly, she started to calm down, but flinched when another contraction hit. She gritted her teeth against the pain, but it became too much. I knew that because she yelled. I had a feeling she wouldn't be the screaming type.

"Ness, one to ten, how bad is it?" Carlisle asked.

"Eight," she said.

Sitting back down, he checked her once more. "Ness, you're almost there, but your son is moving down too fast, the contractions pushing him. I need to deliver him, which means pushing. You're not fully dilated."

"What does that mean?" I asked because pain overtook her again.

"It means that he could stretch her too far and rip on his way out. That last centimeter makes all the difference."

"Do it," Nessie gritted. "I'll heal, but he needs to come out."

Carlisle nodded and then looked to Edward. A moment later, the bed started tilting up more. "Nessie, let me know when the next contraction hits."

She stared at him as if she wanted to rip his head off. "I'm feeling like I'm stuck with one big, pulsing contraction, Carlisle. Just tell me when to fucking push."

Bella braided Nessie's hair to get it out of the way and then used a rag to wipe the sweat off of her.

Carlisle looked up to me. This was really happening and I was actually calm. "On my count of three, Nessie, push."

Sitting up, she shrugged out of the robe and nodded, her grip tightening on my hand. I leaned over to kiss the top of her head. "You got this, baby. And I'm right here. Squeeze my hand as hard as you can."

Her brown eyes met mine. "I love you."

"I love you, too.

"Alright, Ness," Carlisle said, grabbing our attention. He nodded. "One...two...three. Push!"

Taking in a deep breath and squeezing her eyes shut tight, she did as she was told. Toward the end of the motion, she screamed. I'd underestimated the pain threshold when I'd figured she wouldn't scream.

Her fingers crushed my hand so hard that I felt a few things pop, pain radiating up my arm.

And it began.

**Thirteen Hours Later...Wednesday Morning.**

**RPOV**

"Push, Nessie!"

Letting out another scream, I went with the motion that my body was pushing me to do and bore down, my son's body widening, stretching me. Sweat was pouring off my body, hair slick with it. We'd put the bed back so Jacob could sit behind me, his arms my handles, his legs stretched out beside me. He was a comforting strength at my back, tensing every time I pushed so his body was one hard rock steadying me.

The contractions had gotten my attention. But now I knew what Shelby had meant when she'd said the labor had gotten ALL of her attention. Every bone in my body felt liquid and shattered at the same time. Below my waist was just one sharp pain. I wasn't entirely sure I could feel my feet.

"Alright, "Carlisle said. "He's finally crowning. One more big push and his head will be out. Then it's onto the shoulders. After that, should be a piece of cake."

I glared at my grandfather.

He shrugged. "Sorry."

I leaned back against Jacob's chest, regaining my breath and what little strength I had. His lips were warm against my temple.

"You're doing great, Ness. He's almost here. Just a little longer and you'll be holding him. I promise. Then you can sleep." He kissed me again. "I'm right here. Not going anywhere."

Gathering my strength from him, I nodded and sat up. Carlisle nodded. When he counted to three, I pushed with everything I had in me. No screaming this time because I actually felt his head slide and the pressure subsided a little. But I could feel his shoulders stretching me just inside. Esme handed Carlisle a suction. After he used it, he handed it back to her without even looking away.

His eyes met mine. "He's fine," he said with a smile. "One more push and he should slide out pretty easily after his shoulders are free. He'll cry out as soon as his chest is free and his lungs can expand. Make it a big one, okay?"

Nodding, I braced back against Jacob, who was like a wall behind me. I took a few very deep breaths, trying to shake off the exhaustion.

"Ready?"

I nodded and gripped Jacob's wrists tightly. He'd have bruises when this was over.

"Push when you're ready, Ness. I've got him."

A couple more breaths and then, with a scream loud enough to hear outside, I pushed with the contraction that had taken over my body in a giant wave. This was the most painful part so far. My son's shoulders were wider than his head and I could feel my body rip on the inside, those sensitive walls unable to hold up to the task after hours of being abraded by the friction of my son's skin.

As stars burst behind my eyes and my body went slack with lack of pressure, I heard a shrill cry in the room. Everybody had gone silent.

"Perfectly healthy baby boy," Carlisle said with a smile in his voice.

Forcing my eyes open, I saw Esme take my baby and wrap him into a sterile blue towel. She was methodical as she cleaned him off, discarded the towel with all the fluids, and wrapped him in a clean, fresh towel.

"Ness," Carlisle said firmly.

Through my tears, I managed to look at my grandfather, pulling my eyes away from my son.

"Your body is still having contractions. The placenta needs to come out. I know you're tired and you want to hold your baby boy, but I need you to give me just a few more pushes, okay? After that, he's all yours."

"Come on, Ness," Jacob whispered in my ear. "The worst is over."

Five minutes later, Carlisle was cleaning me up. Already, the sharp pain was seeping away, leaving my hips sore. It was good to be half vampire.

My eyes were glued to Esme as she walked over to us, smiling. If she had been capable of crying, she would have been. Will was still wailing, just not as loudly.

"He's beautiful," she whispered.

Weakly, I held my arms out, desperate to hold my little boy. Jacob's arms came around to hold mine steady as Esme placed our son in our arms.

He calmed instantly.

My first look at him, and my heart was forever his. He was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen in my life. His skin was just a touch lighter than Jacob's, probably because of my genes; and there was already a dark patch of black hair on his head. He looked like he was asleep, hands and mouth relaxed.

"Hello, William," I choked through my tears, stroking his cheek with my finger. He moved his head into my touch.

Something dropped onto my shoulder. Looking up, tears were falling down Jacob's face to land on my skin. I'd long ago shed the t-shirt in favor of a cami. The heat had been unbearable. Jacob's arm that wasn't helping me hold the heft of Will's body came up. He stroked his own fingers over our son's chubby cheek, brushing over his nose.

"We'll give you some time," Carlisle said softly, looking down at his great-grandson.

Mom and Dad both kissed my head. Mom hugged Jacob gently, and Dad shook his hand before they both followed Esme and Carlisle out.

"He's here," Jacob whispered. "He's beautiful."

Laughing with joy, I just couldn't take my eyes away from him. "He really is. Jacob, we did it. Our son is here. We're holding him."

Jacob's warm lips pressed into my neck just under my jaw. "You were amazing, so strong. I'm so proud of you."

In my arms, Will moved. His upper body wiggled a little, mouth moving. After a couple moments, his eyes opened, looking up at us with an unfocused gaze.

I gasped. I'd been told that babies tended to have hazel eyes at birth, but Will's eyes were brown. Not dark like mine or Jacob's, but lighter, like milk chocolate mixed with caramel. Gorgeous.

As Jacob and I watched him, he began to move around more, mouth opening and closing, head turning toward my chest. He pressed to my breasts, little arms moving, fingers making slow progress.

There was no telling how much time passed. Jacob and I took turns touching our son, like we couldn't believe that he was actually here, that this was actually happening. It seemed like the most natural thing when he turned against me, reaching out at my breast. Jacob gave a masculine chuckle, a proud father moment, I supposed. Will's mouth was warm against my skin, but he never tried to feed, just nuzzled me.

Jacob raised the bed behind us so he could lean back, gently bringing me with him to rest against his chest.

More time passed and eventually, Will latched on, suckling. It was a little uncomfortable at first, but watching him feed was worth it. He didn't take very much, and was still afterward, eyes closed, body peaceful.

Adjusting him gently, I laid him stomach down on my chest, his head tucked under my chin as I rested back against Jacob. Sleep tugged at me, exhaustion rolling over me in crashing waves. Jacob wrapped his arms around me and Will, giving me that feeling of safety.

In moments, I was asleep, my son tucked safely in my arms while his father protected us both with his.

**JPOV**

I had a son.

After Nessie had passed out in my arms, Carlisle had come back in to check on mother and baby. She was out for the count. Carlisle had taken Will out of her arms gently, and I managed to get out from under her to shadow the doctor. He did all his measurements of my son and then put a diaper on him before wrapping him back up. When Carlisle handed him to me, I took him as if he were glass.

Sleepily, he opened his eyes to look up at me. The color was lighter than Nessie's milk chocolate. Like a dark caramel. Somewhere between the gold of the Cullens' and brown of Nessie's. I held him perpendicular to my body, his little feet against my chest, head in my palm. I knew there were people waiting, wolves watching the window from outside.

Eyes on my son, I walked over to the big window-wall and stared down at all the wolves, some in human form, others pacing in wolf form. Sadie was the first to see me at the window. She grabbed everybody else's attention, and when they were all facing me, I held up my son where they could see him.

A cheer broke out as well as howls. More howls echoed further out in the woods, coming from those on patrol. In my arms, Will wiggled, hands going to his face as his mouth moved into something resembling a yawn. The future of the pack was in my arms, was my son. This tiny baby boy would someday be like me.

He was their future alpha.

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><p><strong>OMG please <strong>**_please_**** tell me how you feel about this one. And please don't be all "you did this wrong". I'm aware I've never had a kid and that all women are different. But yeah! I love you guys so so so much! xoxoxoxoxo**


	7. Chapter 7

**Bahahahaha! I didn't even think of the Lion King when writing the last chapter. But that's great. Oh well. Sorry it's been few days. Just wanted everyone to get a chance to read the last chapter before I made Jake adorable. And thank you for all your advice and reviews. They were super helpful!**

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><p><strong>A couple days later...<strong>

**RPOV**

Clutching my son to my chest, I waited for Jacob to unlock the front door. Will had fallen asleep on our way home. Carlisle had cleared both me and William to come home, and I hadn't been able to wait to get my son to the place he'd grow up. Jacob flourished us into the house before picking up the bags and tossing them down at the door. There'd been no need for a carrier because I wasn't letting him go yet. Over the past couple days it had been either me or Jacob holding him. Sure, other people had held him, but nowhere near as much as the two of us.

Billy had surprised us all when he'd started crying into Will's blanket.

The kids had been fascinated by him, always coming up to me as I sat on the couch, rocking him in my arms to look at him. Haleigh always giggled when he'd gone to grip her finger. I was pretty tired, waking up in the wee hours of the morning to feed him, but it was so worth it. Jacob had silently volunteered for the changings.

Going over to the couch, I sat down, propping my feet on the coffee table and laid Will on my legs. Jacob built the fire up. Someone had been in our house, taking care of things because it was warm instead of freezing inside, which meant that someone turned on the heat. Probably Seth. He was amazing. No matter his problems, he still thought of other people.

I did still have baby weight, obviously. My breasts heavy with milk, which was good. He fed a lot and I wanted to avoid formula as long as possible.

Jacob came to sit beside me, his arm across the back of the couch. As Will woke up, Jacob pressed his finger into a tiny palm. Will grabbed onto it, turning his head in that direction and wrapped his mouth around the tip.

Jacob chuckled. "I think he's hungry again."

"Surprise, surprise," I said around a smile. "Our son's just like his father."

"Hey! I don't eat that much."

I gave him a look. "Please. He doesn't actually take in that much yet. So if you combine all his feedings it's probably about the same amount that you eat at one sitting."

"Good point," he conceded.

I'd taken to wearing easily accessible shirts and bras that unclasped from the front. Lifting him up in my arms, hand behind his head, I held him to my breast and let him find purchase on his own.

Jacob kissed my temple. "It's so weird to think I'm a dad now." As Will fed, Jacob stroked the top of his head. "We made this. This life."

Grinning, I rested my head against Jacob's as we watched our son. "And I'm a mom. I was so scared that I wouldn't know what to do," I said softly. "But everything seems to come so naturally."

"I know what you mean. When Carlisle handed him to me the other night, I didn't feel nervous at all. He's my son and I knew I wouldn't let anything happen to him."

I grinned up at him, and then pressed my lips gently to his.

"I love you so much," he whispered.

"I love you, too. How are your wrists?"

"Ness, I'm fine."

"Seriously. Let me see."

Sighing in defeat, he pulled the sleeves of his shirt to his elbows. Dark black bruises ran up and down his forearm from his fingers to his elbows. Now I knew why he'd been wearing the long sleeve shirts. He didn't want me to see what I'd done to him.

"Oh, Jacob! I'm so sorry."

After that first push, I'd realized what Carlisle had meant about that last centimeter, so I'd stopped. I'd waited thirteen freaking hours to dilate past nine, the huge contractions so painful that I'd thought my body was being ripped apart. And then finally, Carlisle yelled at me to push again. Ten minutes later, my son was born.

Jacob's burst of laughter surprised me and made Will jerk in my arms. "Are you kidding? It was the least I could do for what you were going through. This is nothing. I'll heal. I just wanted to be more a part of it for you."

Staring at him in wonder, I shook my head. "How did I ever get so lucky?"

He shrugged casually. "Eh, it's the wolf genes. They just had to have you." He kissed my head once more right before his stomach let out a tremendous growl.

Laughing, I laid Will out on my legs once more to tuck everything back in and put my shirt back in place. "You need food. Neither of us have really been eating." Lifting Will up, I handed him to Jacob, then reached for a burping towel from the diaper bag at my feet. As I stood up, I draped it over Jacob's shoulder.

"Where are you going?" he asked as he carefully laid Will on his shoulder, gently patting a big hand over our son's back.

"To make us some food. Gotta feed the beast, and I need some blood to help me heal. Those tears hurt like a bitch. I may take the meds next time."

He scoffed. "Doubt it. Even going through all the pain, you said no."

Laughing, I went for the kitchen. "That is true." As I walked, I stretched out as best I could. The tears inside my body still hurt, but every time I took in blood, they healed a little more. Still, Carlisle had said that Jacob and I shouldn't be intimate until a month or so like a human because of it. Will and I were to go back for a one month checkup anyway.

Shelby had been amazed that I so easily left Will with Jacob and let him out of my sight. She still had issues sometimes with Brayden. But I didn't share her fears of abandoning my child. Besides, Jacob was a perfectly capable father. In fact, Will, Leila, Henry, and Brayden were probably the safest babies in this part of the country. One by one, the pack had knelt down in front of me, pressing a kiss to my son's forehead, pledging their protection. They'd done the same with Leila and Brayden, just less formally.

While I made us some chicken parmesan, I snacked on some fresh blackberries. Mom must have been keeping the house freshly stocked. She'd gone out yesterday, Dad telling me she'd be back. And she'd taken the car. Clean bottles were lined up on the counter as well as a breast pump. Idly, I wondered if Shelby had thought to use one for when she and Seth went out in public. I could mention it.

As I popped the chicken into the oven, I felt so different now. I was a mom, my baby sleeping on his father's chest, or about to. Jacob was a father. We'd finally done it. And unlike all those websites saying that I might be feeling too exhausted or depressed or whatever, I felt perfectly fine. My son was healthy. We were home. And I was healing. Sure, I was nervous that I'd do something wrong, but Carlisle assured me that William would spend most of his first week sleeping and not feeding too much. I'd have to wake him up to feed him. But after the first week, he'd be a little more alert and a lot hungry as he went through his first growth spurt. He'd take more milk, and I'd probably have to start using the pump to get enough out and into his system. Jacob and I were prepared to use formula just in case, but Carlisle predicted that my body was now more in tune to the animal side since my son and his father both had the werewolf gene, and that my body would produce whatever Will needed. I hoped he was right.

Right after I threw the noodles into the boiling water, I felt arms wrap around me. Jacob's lips pressed into my throat. "Smells good."

"He asleep?"

"Yeah, just passed right out. I put him in the swing. Figured we weren't quite ready for him to be in the crib away from us."

Stirring the noodles, I said, "You're quite right. At least we have a week of peace before he gets fussy and the necessary two a.m. feedings begin." Leaning back, I smiled at him. "Protective daddy instincts, huh?"

He chuckled. "Apparently. Hey, you should use that pump thing before bed so that I can feed him in the mornings, let you sleep."

"That's sweet, baby, but really, I don't mind. I'm so excited about him that I doubt I'll sleep. Probably just nap when he does."

"Well, you need sleep. I'm going to have to go back to the shop eventually."

Sighing, I went to drain the noodles and take the chicken out of the over, my butt brushing the front of Jacob's hips to get him to move back. He took in a sharp breath. Smiling where he couldn't see me, I said, "I know. And I will sleep. But I've spent a lot of the last two days sleeping off the labor exhaustion. I want to cuddle him."

Jacob laughed. "Momma's boy. That is definitely what he's going to be."

I rolled my eyes as I got two plates together. "Pfft, please. There are going to be enough males hanging around him that he's going to be just fine. A new mother is allowed to love on her baby. Besides, Cricket said our first born son was going to be a badass, so chill."

We both sat down at the table and dug in. I couldn't help but look over the couch every few minutes to check on him. He was snoozing away as he gently rocked back and forth, his face and body still squinched up, having yet to stretch out. Jacob had cuddled him up in a deep red blanket, a little knit hat, and small mittens to keep him warm.

"He's fine, Ness," Jacob said with a grin.

"I know. I guess...it's hard to believe this is real, that I'm really a mom. That our baby is in the living room sleeping, when just two days ago he was still inside me."

Reaching across the table, Jacob gripped my hand, his thumb rubbing over the back of it. "I know. I'm a father now. I mean, he's going to grow up and call me daddy. It's crazy to think that the danger is over and we've actually started our family, but here he is. These nine months have flown by. It's now September and only one month away until we're celebrating our anniversary. Our son will be two months old when we do."

Horror flooded me. Good grief. He was absolutely right. I hadn't even thought about our anniversary. Or Brayden's upcoming one year birthday. Or Walker and Christa's big to-do wedding. Haleigh's seventh birthday had been yesterday, September first.

But Jacob was right. We were really a family now that Will was actually here with us. I wouldn't have traded it for anything.

**JPOV**

We'd just sat back down on the couch when a knock sounded at the door. Nessie popped back to her feet and went to answer it.

"Aunt Rose, Uncle Emmett! You're back. Come on in."

Rosalie and Emmett had been away helping a vampire coven adjust to life as vegetarians. They'd asked for help so Emmett and Rosalie had gone.

Rosalie let out an excited squeal as she came in the door, hugging Nessie. "I'm so sorry we couldn't be here for the birth."

Nessie shook her head. "Don't be. There were so many people in the house it was a little overwhelming but I'm glad you're here now. He's in the swing if you wanna go pick him up."

I was already on my feet, picking Will up out of the swing. Rosalie met me there with a smile and her golden eyes bright. Good. She'd fed recently.

"May I?" she asked quietly.

"Sure." I handed him over.

Nessie was hugging her uncle as Rosalie twirled over to them.

"You make a cute kid, Ness," Emmett said.

She grinned over at me. "I did have a little help, you know. It takes two."

Emmett's expression went to one of distaste. "I really didn't need that image, but thanks."

Rosalie's nose crinkled up as she studied my son. "At least he doesn't smell as rank as his father." She met my eyes over Will's head and smiled a little. She'd made a joke. "_But _at least he has your looks, Jacob."

My eyebrows met my hairline. "Was that a compliment, Blondie?"

Her smile was small. "Maybe. Don't look too much into it. He is half of my niece after all." Looking up at me, she winked.

"Right," I said going along with it.

"Seriously, though," she went on, "he is handsome." She gasped and I assumed he'd opened his eyes. Everybody had the same reaction when they saw the color. "Oh," Rosalie sighed. "So beautiful."

Walking up behind her to look over her shoulder, Emmett chuckled before looking at Ness. "You sure he's Jacob's? Those eyes are a little on the light side."

Nessie gave her uncle a dry look. "Oh yeah. If you want I can recount all the times we-"

"No," Emmett interrupted quickly, holding up a hand. "I'm good. Thanks."

"Hush, Emmett. He's perfect."

Emmett smiled up at me. "He really is. Gonna have all the girls drooling."

"Already does," I said with a laugh as I watched Rosalie rub her nose against Will's.

She glared at me the whole time she walked over to the couch and sat down. Emmett and Ness followed.

"So," Nessie said, flopping down in the loveseat, "how was your trip?"

I sat down next to her, my arm around her shoulders.

Emmett rolled his eyes. "They thought they were going to starve to death. I mean really, vampires living in the forest shouldn't be so whiny." His expression turned to longing. "I wish we had panthers. So delicious."

Ness and I both burst out laughing.

"Better than grizzly?" I asked.

Emmett shrugged. "Sweeter, more like a dessert. Everything here is more salty, some bitter," he said as Rosalie handed Will to him.

It was odd to see such a big guy be so gentle with something as small as a newborn baby. He was careful to cradle his nephew's head.

"Hey, there, William," he said softly. "When you get older and your dad won't kill me, I'll teach you to fight. And how to handle the ladies."

Chuckling, I rolled my eyes.

William smacked his lips a little.

Emmett looked up at us. "Hungry?"

Nessie shrugged. "He could be. I just fed him about an hour ago. Carlisle said to feed him whenever he wants. See if he sucks on your finger."

Putting his large finger near Will's mouth, he shook his head. "Nah, just gumming it to death. Is it normal for him to go back to sleep now? I can't tell. I mean, you weren't a normal baby. You didn't sleep this much."

We both laughed.

"Yeah, he'll be sleeping like that a lot for about the first month. According to Carlisle, though, the crying should pick up in the second week or so," I answered. That I had been paying attention to.

Rosalie grinned at us. "You two seem really composed and ready for this."

I shrugged. "We have to be. He's here. There isn't a choice. And even if we had one, he'd be our pick. We knew what we were signing on for when we started trying for a baby."

"Absolutely," Nessie said beside me.

We chatted more about the baby and their trip. It was nice to just sit down with Emmett and Rosalie. They both seemed very content. After they left, Will seemed to wake up a little and Nessie needed a shower. After she fed him again, she ran for the shower. Spreading out a blanket, I laid Will on his little tummy, careful of the umbilical cord. Figured we could have some daddy/son time while he was more awake and mommy was in the shower. So, face to face, I laid out on my stomach, and rested my cheek on my hands, watching him. Those dark honey eyes watched me, unfocused.

Reaching forward, I placed one of my fingers against his palm. He tried to grasp it but couldn't keep the hold.

"It's alright. Once you grow up, you'll get stronger. Right now, though, you gotta let mommy and daddy take care of you. I'll be strong for you." He was so tiny and I so wasn't. It was hard to believe that this little guy would someday be ask big as me. Leaning forward, I pressed a kiss to his forehead. "I'll always be there for you, even when you don't want me to be. Because, trust me, I've been there. You're gonna hear that speech a lot, that whole 'I was that age once' speech." I laughed at the memories. "Because now," I continued, stroking his little fingers, "I get where that comes from even though you're only two days old. I so get it."

After a couple minutes, his face scrunched up and he cried out a little. Already, I knew what that meant. Hopping up to sit on my knees, I picked him up carefully and flipped him onto his back before reaching for the diaper bag next to the couch. After unsnapping the onesie, I checked the diaper. Yep. My daddy instincts were getting honed quite nicely. At least it wasn't rank yet. Brayden on the other...man, that kid. I'd made the mistake of wondering out loud what they were feeding him. Shelby had hit me, lovingly of course.

It didn't take very long to clean him up. I even cleaned around the umbilical cord and then slapped a fresh diaper on him. Once he was buttoned back up, I picked him up and held him in the air, making sure to support his head.

"I think that was record timing. What do you think? Think I got this diaper changing thing down?" He blinked sleepily and smacked his lips a little. "Yeah, me, too. Mommy doesn't stand a chance."

A throat cleared behind me. Pulling him to my chest, I turned to find Nessie standing there with her arms crossed, hair still damp around her shoulders. She was wearing a large shirt that hung off one shoulder, low enough to give Will access when he needed it, and a pair of loose pajama bottoms. She looked exhausted but still glowing.

"She doesn't, does she?" she asked, eyebrow raised. "Well, Diaper Daddy, just remember that once he really starts eating because you just put yourself in charge of all future diaper changes."

I looked down at Will. Honey eyes rolled up to mine. "Oops. Looks like we're changing buddies, huh?"

Laughing, she walked over to us, pressing her lips gently to his temple. "You two are so cute. Annnd, he's snoozing again." She reached for diaper bag and pulled out a pacifier. He took it, still out for the count.

I put him back in the swing gently, covering him up. Once he was tucked in, I went for the dirty diaper, going to throw it in the garbage outside at the back of the house, and then washed my hands before sitting down next to my wife.

The rest of the night was spent watching our recorded shows and our sleeping son. Every couple hours or so, Ness would wake him up to see if he need to eat. I changed the diapers when needed.

Neither of us really felt like sleeping. And we both could live with that.

**One Month Later...Early October**

**RPOV**

"Look at that smile," I said, snapping a picture with my phone. "That's the one we'll send to daddy."

Jacob had gone back to work, reluctantly, about a week ago. I promised that I'd blow his phone up with disgustingly cute pictures. William had started staying awake longer, became more lively. He did eat more and I'd started pumping so that Jacob could feed him from a bottle. We'd started taking turns on the early morning feedings, letting each other sleep. Carlisle had suggested "tummy time" which would help Will learn to lift his head on his own and use his arms to raise his chest. The first time I saw him do it, I immediately grabbed my phone and sent the video to Jake.

Now, I sent the picture to Jacob. Will had lost most of his jerky movements, and I helped him move around by helping him sit up. Throughout the days, I read to him. Put on little educational movies that he really didn't understand yet, but hey, starting early never hurt. Overall, he was a happy kid. Sometimes I'd mess with him when he didn't want it, so I just let him swing while I did some house work or visited with people who came to check on us. Mom Dad, Billy, and Becca with Henry were over a lot.

Every day that Jacob came home, he'd take a shower, grab Will, and sprawl out on the couch with our son on his chest. Will would nap, sucking on a pacifier, while Jacob watched tv and I cooked dinner.

It was amazing how normal we seemed. Me being the housewife, staying home with the baby while Jacob went to work. I loved it. Staying home didn't bother me either. I wasn't quite ready to share my baby with the world even though I knew I'd have to start so he could experience new things.

Speaking of, the front door opened and Jacob walked in, grease smeared over the left side of his face. He was grinning. "That was a great picture," he said, coming to kiss me.

From the living room, Will made a sound that was more like a squeal. He was starting to recognize us. Jacob shrugged out of his jacket and went for Will, grinning.

"Hey, my little man! No, you can't gum my fingers yet. They aren't clean" He crouched down in front of the swing, and pushed him a little. "Were you good for momma today?"

"We both had our check-ups today," I said as I dried my hands on a kitchen towel, leaning my hip on the couch.

He looked over his shoulder. "Yeah?"

I nodded. "He's perfectly healthy."

"And you?"

"I," I said slowly, "have been cleared for nefarious deeds done in the dark."

Chuckling darkly, Jacob straightened up. "Oh, have you?"

My hands slid into the back pocket of my jeans as I nodded. "Mhm. Everything is healed up nicely. Carlisle cleared me."

He stalked toward me, greasy hands sliding over the skin of my hips under my shirt. With his face pressed into my neck, teeth nipping at my skin, he brought my body flush against his. "Mmm, how long do his naps last now?" he demanded, voice low.

"A couple hours or so," I breathed.

"Has he had any today?"

"Yeah. His next sleep is tonight with us."

His teeth wrapped around my pulse and pressed down with the most delicious pressure. "Good," he growled. "I'll take you tonight." He ground his hips into mine, making me arch at the feel of that hard length, before he left me completely and went for the stairs.

"Tease," I said before he completely disappeared down the stairs.

Stopping, his broad shoulders taking up the doorway, he turned to smile at me devilishly. "Don't worry. I'll come through." And then he was gone.

Will did that squealing again. When I looked over at him, he smiled, little hands fisting the blanket. Usually, Jacob would use my shower time as bonding time for him and Will. The same went for me. So, going over to him, I picked him up. Immediately, his hands dug into my hair.

Going down on my knees, I spread out a dark blue, heavily cushioned blanket. "Alright, little man, time to work on your push-ups. Gotta be strong like daddy."

Unfortunately, this was not on his list of things to do. Instead, he fussed when I tried to gently pry his fingers away from my hair. He was in the midst of his gripping reflex which would last a few more months. My hair was one of his favorite things to grip, so I let him tug on my hair until he lost the strength and interest. Jacob was coming up the stairs as I was laying Will belly down on the blanket. He was starting to gain enough strength to try to roll over when he was on his back, but not quite managing it. But he was able to keep his head up on his own for long periods of time.

As Jacob walked up behind me, Will pushed his little arms under him to push himself up and look at us. Jacob knelt down beside me and those honey-colored eyes followed. Carlisle said that he was advancing nicely for only six weeks.

"God, he's so big already," Jacob said, his hand smoothing over my hip.

I reached out to boop Will's nose. "Yeah, he is. He really doesn't like the mittens anymore though."

"Really? How do you know?"

"Because he got fussy when I tried to put them on him when I took him down to Carlisle. The hat was fine, but the mittens? Heaven forbid."

He laughed. "I guess that's an image of me. I have always hated gloves."

This was something I didn't know. It had never come up in conversation before. "Really? How come?"

Massive shoulders lifted in a shrug. "Not really sure. They just bother me. I feel so cut off from the world when I can't feel it, you know?"

It made sense, but I loved my knit gloves, especially the fingerless ones.

Will's arms gave out and he fell back to the blanket but his head stayed up, eyes on us, still smiling.

"He's got your smile," Jacob said.

And that made me smile.

**JPOV**

In front of us, Will let out a huge yawn and put his head down on the blanket, fingers tiredly clutching the fabric.

"Nap time," I said, reaching for him. When I folded him against my chest, Nessie put a pacifier in his mouth.

This was routine. Every day, I'd come home, take a shower, and we'd take a nap. Laying out on the couch, Will was belly down on my chest, my chin just brushing the top of his head. I turned on the tv, the volume low because of his startle factor. Grinning, Nessie came over to first kiss me and then kiss our son, draping a blanket over him before going into the kitchen. I felt bad that I didn't help her with the cooking, but she'd glared at me when I'd tried to put Will down to nap and help her. Apparently, she thought we needed daddy/son time since she was with him all day while I was at work. I didn't argue because I wanted some time with my son, even if it was to watch him sleep or participate with him.

Sniffing the air, I sensed we were having potato soup for dinner. I could handle that. And tonight, she was going to be my dessert. Until she'd said something today, I hadn't realized how badly I wanted her. She was a feature every night in my dreams, and I had a strong suspicion that they weren't my dreams, that they were hers. Sometimes, after I got done feeding Will at two in the morning, I'd find Nessie flushed and thrashing on the sheets. I'd thought it was a nightmare at first until she moaned. Both the man and the wolf in me couldn't wait to have her underneath us again.

"What are you thinking so hard about?"

Glancing up, I saw Ness leaning on the back of the couch, staring down at me. I reached up to stroke her cheek and then the hair that fell over her shoulder to tickle my arm.

"You," I answered.

She grinned. "I want you, too," she whispered. "Dinner's almost ready."

How long had I been dazed out? Geez. Getting up, I put Will in his swing and went into the kitchen.

Dinner was delicious as always. Ness and I cuddled up on the couch. I fed Will while she folded some freshly dried clothes. It was a nice quiet night at the house of Black. Relatively normal. She asked me about my day and how the shop was holding up. Things were better than ever and Frank was well on his way to opening another shop in Forks. Nessie told me that Rachel had stopped by for some girl time and a shoulder to cry on. My sister and Paul were having issues getting pregnant, causing her to feel like giving up. Now I felt lucky that Ness and I had Will, but I felt terrible for my sister. If anyone understood the fear of not being able to have kids, it was Nessie. That was something that had plagued her before we'd gotten pregnant. There was nothing that anyone could do for them. They'd had the same tests done that Ness and I had had to check fertility. It was just a matter of timing.

Yawning beside me, Ness checked her phone. "It's late," she said softly, with hint of darkness.

In his swing, Will was starting to droop. After I turned off the tv, I got up to get Will. He'd been doing good to sleep through most of the night. Usually, I could get him to go back down before I left for work so that he and Ness could sleep a little longer. He was fast asleep when I laid him down in the crib, his tiny fist locked on my shirt sleeve for a moment before his strength gave out. When I went back into the bedroom, I saw Ness staring down at the bed.

Going up behind her, I wrapped my arms around her waist and nuzzled into her hair. Instead of leaning into the touch like she normally did, she pulled away, pulling my hands off her body.

"Ness?" I asked in confusion.

Sighing, she turned around. "I still...I haven't quite lost the baby weight yet."

I tried really hard not to laugh because I knew she'd take it the wrong way. Instead, I fell to my knees in front of her, not saying a word. Her eyes watched me as I lifted her shirt.

"Jacob-" she said, hands going to my wrists.

I gave her a very stern gaze. "Hush, woman. You're beautiful."

I put my hand on her hips. Her stomach wasn't as flat as it had been before she'd gotten pregnant, but was well on her way to snapping her form back the same way Shelby's body had done. The woman didn't even look like she'd ever had a kid. Ness would be back to her flatness again soon, but I couldn't wait to have her. Besides, I loved her no matter what and she needed to know that.

So, slowly, I leaned forward to press my lips on every inch of her waist and stomach, everything between her hip bones. She still smelled like mint and honey, sticky yet fresh. When I ran my hands up her torso, over her breasts, she jerked with a little hiss. Still sensitive. Got it. As gently as I could, I unhooked the front of the bra, letting it fall open, before going for the button on her jeans. Jeans she could now fit in.

My lips followed, skimming over her skin, as I undid the zipper. Folding the halves of the jeans back and tugging them down, I kissed the top of her sex over the panties. Her body jerked again, this time in pleasure, eyes rolled back. Her fingers shot into my hair.

"Jake," she breathed.

Moving back up her body, I stood up, taking her shirt with me, and then pulled the bra down her arms. Once those were off, I shucked her jeans and panties. As much as I wanted to ravish her, I knew there were parts of her that were still sensitive, like her breasts. And I really just wanted to be inside of her whether we climaxed or not. That connection that bound us was craving the touch.

Her being that sensitive, it surprised me when she pulled away from me again to lay stomach down on the bed. Resting on her elbows, she looked at me through her hair over her shoulder, and spread her legs.

The wolf in me growled, approving of the submissive position. Stripping down, I crawled on top of her on all fours. Her back still sloped the way I loved in a graceful line leading down to her backside.

"No foreplay," she said, seeing the look on my face as I watched her. "Just take me."

"Ness-"

"Please. I need you."

Reaching down between her legs, I found that she was already wet and ready.

"Fuck," I breathed.

She pushed her hips back, forcing my fingers further inside her. "Told you. Just take me, Jake. Please."

Angling down, I laid over her and positioned myself at her entrance, guiding myself inside. Even after popping out a kid, she was deliciously tight, squeezing down on me as I slid inside of her for the first time in months.

Reaching forward, she gripped the bars of the headboard. "I forgot how big you are," she panted.

I let out a laugh that was all pride, sex, and masculinity.

Groaning, she pressed her hips back again, impaling herself further onto me until her ass hit my hips. She sighed and it sounded like relief as I sank in to the hilt. "Move, Jacob. I need to feel you move."

The wolf inside me had come roaring to the surface. Even though she was still sore, I couldn't bring myself to be all that slow and gentle. So I pulled back and shoved into her hard. She cried out. Covering her mouth with my hand, I listened, ear toward the closet door. Silence. Good.

With my hand over her mouth, I pounded into her. She grunted as the bed moved with each powerful thrust. Moving around, he repositioned my hand so that she could suck on my fingers. Shiiiiiiit. I was already close enough. She moaned around my fingers, the sound vibrating in my bones.

Skimming up her body, my free hand grabbed her wrist, my weight pinning her for a moment, unhooked her hand and I rolled us onto our sides. Moving her top leg over my thigh, I couldn't go as deep at this angle, but it was so worth it because I hit that sweet sweet spot inside her that I could reach by curling my fingers inside her. Every time my shaft rubbed that spot she shivered, jerking in my arms, teeth convulsing over my fingers.

"That's it," I whispered in her ear. "Come for me." Moving my free hand down the front of her body, I pressed and rubbed that little bundle at the top of her sex, making her jerk harder.

Squeezing her eyes closed, she reached up, her nails scratching at me. Blood welled on my shoulder, neck, and scalp. Moving even more shallow, I rubbed that spot exclusively. And she exploded, body arching, screaming around my fingers. I took them out of her mouth so that I could clap my palm over her lips. My own body snapped as her ass pressed into my hips, as her body tightened around mine. We laid there in a tense, straining heap as our bodies caught in a loop of orgasms.

After what felt like forever, she laid still in my arms, breathing hard, as my last drop emptied into her. My hand dropped away from her mouth as I collapsed behind her. Her thigh slipped down off of mine as she tiredly cuddled back into me.

"I need to clean you up," I whispered.

She shook her head. "No. I'll take a shower and clean the sheets tomorrow. Shelby's coming over tomorrow so she can watch Will. Right now, I just want to slip into lovely afterglow sleep."

"Whatever you want," I said, pressing a kiss to the back of her neck. "You're beautiful, Nessie. Don't ever think you're not in my eyes, okay? I love you, and I will always want you."

"Mmm, I love you, too, baby." Wrapping her hand around mine, she laced our fingers so that our wedding rings rubbed together, and brought my fingers to her lips. "You're beautiful, too."

Chuckling, I cuddled down on the bed. "Just go to sleep. I'll take care of Will in the morning."

But she didn't hear me, already passed out with a small smile on her lips.

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><p><strong>Short, yes. But if I were to write all the little precious things, we'd end up with a whole novel instead of novella. Besides, don't we all want to get closer to seeing Jake with his "princess"? And Will a big brother? I know I can't wait! But I love you guys and all your reviews. They literally keep me going! Love you! xoxoxoxo<strong>


	8. Chapter 8

**For clarification, I did not skip over September. It was early September when they took Will home. He was born August 31****st****. The problem with all these kids is keeping up with ages and birthdays! Why do I have to be so specific? Anyway, another fluffy chapter. I want to end this story on his first year or so, but not month by month. That would be so damn boring. I'm going to try to end this story in maybe 2-4 more chapters. No more than twelve. And then on to Jules! And sorry for being gone for a week. Writer's block grabbed me again. I got jammed up with so many characters from other stories! Oh and I am working on a Mortal Instruments fic but not based off the books. Probably purely human and whatnot. **

***Disclaimer***

**Please Enjoy!**

* * *

><p><strong>A couple weeks later...Late October.<strong>

**JPOV**

My son was more than fussy today. He did not want his mother. Somehow, he knew she was the one to take him to Carlisle for his first shots. Every time Nessie tried to hold him, he screamed louder. Carlisle said that Will's mental functions were starting to develop faster than a normal baby's. His motor functions as well. Over the past two weeks, he could hold his head up longer and could roll back and forth from his stomach to his back and back to his stomach. He was also starting to remember people. He'd smile at the people that came around the house the most often, making noises at them. Though, he wasn't as fast-growing as Brayden had been, which was odd considering how fast Nessie had grown. Carlisle suspected, after studying his blood, that human was the most dominant gene, followed by the wolf, and then the vampire.

Right now, we were on our way to Billy's place, my jacket laying over Will in his carseat. Figured he'd be warmer with something that had been against my body than just wrapped up in a blanket. His little hat poked up over the collar. Shelby had gotten him a hat to match Brayden's with the the little points on each side. He was still fussy, but I'd gotten him to take his pacifier. And instead of being upset, Nessie had thought it was cute that Will "ran to daddy". She kept smiling, looking over her shoulder at him even though he was mostly covered up.

Billy was throwing a family dinner for me and Ness as our anniversary present. He also really wanted to see Will, which was fine. It was amazing to watch my dad with his grandson. He acted different toward Will than he did with Henry, and I could tell that it bothered Becca. Not that Billy didn't love Henry. He adored him. But Billy hadn't been allowed to watch his eldest grandson grow up whether through pictures or in person, and that had wounded him.

It had started raining the moment we pulled into the drive. I slipped into my jacket after Ness had handed it to me. Then she unbuckled Will and picked him up. Immediately, he started fussing around his pacifier-until she handed him to me. He calmed down as I tucked him into my jacket against my body and zipped him in.

"Could you get me a blanket?" I asked. "Need to cover his head."

The sky had opened up, dropping rain hard on the rez and Forks. She handed me one of his blankets and I draped it over my shoulder where his read was resting.

"Alright, little man. We're gonna make a break for it," I said.

Nessie was grinning at us.

"What?"

She shook her head. "You are so cute as a dad."

I rolled my eyes. "Oh shut up."

Opening the door, I hopped out and jogged to the covered ramp that I'd made years ago for Billy's wheelchair with Will clutched to my chest. Nessie was right behind me with the diaper bag. Her hair was lank and damp around her. I motioned her ahead of me.

She went up to the door, knocking on it as she walked in. "Hello, hello!"

"Ah, the guests of honor!" Billy rolled up to us, grinning. "Happy anniversary!"

Laughing, Nessie ducked down to hug him. "Thanks, Billy."

Pulling back, he stared at her with frown. "Where's my grandson? And why are you holding the diaper bag?"

While Nessie giggled some more, I stepped forward, rolling my eyes. Behind me, I closed the door. "I have him, old man. He is my son. I'm perfectly capable of carrying him."

"He's mad at me today," Nessie said. "So, he wanted daddy."

Charlie came into the room then with Sue. "Hey, guys. Good to see you." While Nessie hugged him, he asked, "So why is little guy mad at you?"

"I took him to get his first shots today."

"And he knows to be mad at you?"

Ness shrugged. "He's developing quickly. Not as fast as Brayden, but more than a human baby."

"Ah."

Sue butted Charlie out of the way so she could hug Ness. "You look amazing, sweetie."

"Thank you."

And it was true. After two weeks of making love almost every night, Nessie had sweated off that little bit of weight and was back to her flat tummy once more. Sex really was good exercise.

Unzipping my jacket and moving the wet blanket, Will was revealed, his tiny fists gripping my shirt, focused eyes watching everyone. He was furiously working the pacifier. Billy reached for him, and I handed him over. He was developed enough that he rarely needed his head supported, a perk of his genes. Billy held him carefully in the crook of his arm, grinning down at him. Will grinned back around his pacifier.

"He's so precious," Sue said. She clapped her hands. "Well, dinner's almost ready. Although, Paul and Rachel are going to be a little late. Something about him sleeping all day."

I rolled my eyes again. "Sounds like him."

"Uncle Jacob!"

Henry skidded around the corner of the hallway on socked feet and ran straight for me. I braced myself as he jumped into my arms. He was now six years old and looked it. He'd grown up in the past year, filling out. And he'd learned to finish his words.

"What's up, big guy?" I asked, hefting him up.

"I got a new wolf."

"You did?"

He nodded vigorously. "He's the same color as you."

"Well, you'll have to show me. Sounds pretty cool."

"He's in the living room."

"Well, then that's where we'll go. Excuse us," I said as I moved down the hallway.

Becca and Tom were sitting on the couch, their heads close together.

"Hey, guys," I said, announcing my presence.

They both startled and looked up.

Becca smiled, but it wasn't genuine. A tight stretch of lips. "Hi, Jake."

"Something wrong?" I asked as I set Henry on his feet. Oblivious, he went for his toys that Becca carted around. Something to look forward to with my own son.

Tom shook his head. "No, not at all."

Becca wouldn't meet my eyes.

"Is this about Dad? And Will?" I demanded, crossing my arms over my chest.

Tears slowly crept into her eyes. "It's not Will, Jacob. I'd never put anything over my nephew, who's a baby."

"Then what is it, Becca?"

"He's still angry with me. He's different with Henry than he is with William."

Moving around, I sat down on the sturdy coffee table in front of her. "Becca, he's not still angry with you. He just...doesn't know Henry. There's so much he missed, so much we all missed. Dad was there when my son was born. It's a different dynamic, Bec. And I hate that we can see the difference, but he does love Henry. Adores him. As do I. And you have to think about the fact that Will is the son of his only son. That's a different dynamic as well. I don't know why, but it is. Don't think that he favors my son over yours. That's not the case at all."

Swallowing hard, she nodded. But I could tell she was having problems accepting that.

Suddenly, a figurine appeared in my face.

"See, Uncle Jacob? It looks like you!"

Taking it from him, I studied it. It was russet brown. "It sure does. That's pretty cool, big guy. How many wolves do you have now?"

"Five."

"Five? You're going to have a pack of your own, huh?"

His little face became serious. "Uncle Jacob, am I going to be a wolf, too?"

I looked to Becca. She nodded.

Handing him the figurine back, I said, "Maybe someday. When you're older."

"How older?"

"How much older?" I corrected. He nodded. "A few more years."

"Okay," he said cheerfully, attention already on his toys.

Behind me, someone knocked on the doorjamb. "Dinner's ready," Sue said.

I could see Charlie pushing Billy into the kitchen, my dad's attention on Will. Shucking my jacket, I hung it on a chair as I walked into the small dining room. Behind me, Becca was telling Henry to leave his toys in the living room. At the table, Nessie was handing Billy a bottle and taking the pacifier from Will. She grinned at me as I sat down. Sue had made her famous lasagna and garlic bread. Two huge pans sat in the middle of the table, the bread cut up in a bowl.

"This looks amazing, Sue," I said as Nessie handed me a heaping plate. "Thank you."

She smiled maternally at me. "Oh, you're welcome, honey. I just figured that since you weren't going anywhere and aren't fond of leaving Will yet that we would just have dinner and family time."

Nessie sat down next to me, her knee against mine. "It's lovely, Sue. And much appreciated."

Across the house, the door opened. Rachel and Paul came into the dining room a moment later. My sister was glowing even though it was clear she was trying not to.

"Happy anniversary," she sang, coming over to wrap her arms around my shoulders and kiss the top of my head.

"Thanks," I said laughing as she moved on to Nessie. "What's up with you?"

"Oh, nothing," she said, plopping down the chair next to my wife. "Did you bring my nephew?"

I nodded to Billy, who was still feeding Will. "And Henry's here, too."

Rachel looked across the table to Henry and smiled. "Of course he is! Hey, my man," she said, reaching her hand across the table. Grinning, he reached up and smacked it. Rachel sat back shaking out her hand. "Ooo, boy! You're getting strong."

Clearing my throat, I raised my eyebrows to Rachel. "Rach, what's going on?"

She gave me a stern look. "Nothing. This is your day. No ruining it."

Nessie nudged her. "Ruin my day. Tell me. Tell me. Tell me!"

"You sure?"

"Duh."

My sister and Paul shared a look. And then Rachel turned back to Nessie. "We're pregnant!"

Squealing, Nessie threw her arms around Rachel while everyone else cheered. I clapped, grinning.

"Best anniversary present ever!" Nessie said. "How far along?"

"About a month. I was pregnant when you and I talked. I just didn't know. I went to Carlisle when I started feeling sick all the time. He's so sweet to take care of all of us."

Nessie squeezed her hand. "He just cares about everybody, including the wolves. A supernatural healer for supernatural beings. Just makes a certain amount of sense."

"That's true."

Getting up, I went to hug my sister. She stood up, her face buried in my shoulder. "Thank you, Jake."

I kissed the side of her head. "For what?"

"You and Nessie, helping me keep hope."

"That's what we're here for. I love you, big sister. Congrats. You're gonna be great."

"So," Nessie said, "an anniversary and celebration dinner. I can dig it."

We all laughed as I sat back down and dug in.

**RPOV**

Rachel was holding Will. He smiled up at her from where he was sitting in her lap and leaning against her arm.

"Only two months old and he's huge."

I laughed. "Oh yeah. I actually can't wait until he can interact more with me, you know? I'm anxious for him to grow up. I mean, I love the baby stage. He's adorable."

"But you want him to talk to you, to understand a love of his mom?"

"Something like that. He's still mad at me for the shots, so everyone can hold him but me."

She reached out her free hand. "Ness, you're his mother. He won't stay mad." Looking down at him, she smiled. "See? He's smiling at you." Picking him up, she handed him to me. "Here, take him," she demanded.

Reaching forward hesitantly, I put my hands around him. He grinned at me around the pacifier. My gut unclenched when I sat him on my knees, bouncing him.

"Told you so."

Though he was smiling, his eyes started to droop. Rachel made cute faces while I picked him up and pressed him to my shoulder. He cuddled into my hair and fell asleep.

Rachel put her hand to her stomach. "I so can't wait."

I laughed. "The other eight months are probably going to kill you. But at least you won't have blood cravings the way I did. That was awful. And, Rach?"

"Yeah?"

"You can come over whenever you want, as always. And I'm sure Aunt Alice will want to help you out with all the baby stuff."

Her smile was of gratefulness and relief. "Thank you, Nessie. You're the best sister-in-law. Alice has just done so much for us already though."

"Think of it this way, my family cares for the wolves. How could they not when the packs stood with them against the Volturi? They see it as a debt that they don't mind repaying. I mean, I know that the males of the pack want to support their women and families, but my family doesn't mind helping out with the big stuff, okay? And they will never ask you to pay them back."

"Thank you," she whispered.

At that moment, Jacob came in, his eyes immediately seeking me and Will out as if to make sure we were okay. He grinned. "Hey, ladies."

"Hey, little brother."

"Sue says dessert is almost ready."

Rachel put her hand to her stomach again. "There's more? I already ate a wolf's share of lasagna."

"Hey, that's good," I said, nudging her. "At least you can still eat meat."

"I suppose."

Paul shoved Jacob aside in a brotherly way and came to sit beside Rachel, handing her a glass of water. She rested back against him as he sank back into the couch. They were cute and glowing, probably a lot like Jake and I had been after we'd found out we were pregnant. Even two months after Will's arrival, it was hard to believe that our nine months were past us. Honestly, I couldn't wait until I got pregnant again. I wanted Will to have a brother or sister. Once Jacob and I had started making love again, I became conscious of my body, paying attention. From my experience with Will, I realized that I could sense a pregnancy sooner than if I were fully human. Not that I wanted to get pregnant immediately. Will was only two months old. I wanted some more time with my first born than just that.

My hair moved. Jacob's hand was brushing it aside so he could see Will. He grinned when Will grumbled in his sleep and turned his face into my neck, still nursing on the pacifier. Apparently, my hair had been keeping the light out of his face. Now that Jacob had moved my hair, he didn't like it.

"Oops," Jacob said. "Fast asleep, huh?"

I nodded, rubbing Will's back. "This is his first nap all day. Which is surprising."

He shrugged. "You did say that Carlisle said he'd stay awake longer and longer as he grew."

I laughed. "True. I just didn't expect nearly cold turkey. Our son needs to respect nap times. I'm sure that I will need them when he learns to crawl and walk."

"Some babies," Rachel chimed in, "learn to walk without even crawling."

Will's fingers gripped the collar of my shirt, his nails scratching my skin. Time to start clipping them.

"Oh, please, don't tell me that," I said adjusting him in my arms. "It's like when Carlisle told me that the labor could just stop after being dilated to five centimeters. But of course, waiting through thirteen hours of contractions to dilate completely to ten wasn't that great either."

Rachel gave me a considering look. "Was it really that bad? The labor, I mean."

I thought about how to describe it, and came to the realization that there really wasn't a way _to _describe it. "I can tell you it was totally worth it. But I didn't use the painkillers. They wouldn't have lasted in my system long enough to make a difference. I'm sure they'd help you. Of course, if you have to have a C-section, you'd have to use the medicine."

She shuddered. "C-sections scare me. I really hope I don't have to have one."

Reaching over, I squeezed her hand. "Don't worry. My grandfather has the best, steadiest hands. If you have to have one, you'll be perfectly safe with him."

"Thanks."

Paul leaned forward. "So, Jake, what's it like being a dad?"

Jacob had gone to sit down in a ratty armchair that had been there since I could remember. He shrugged. "Different. It's one thing to know that I have Nessie depending on me. She's a big girl and can handle herself if I'm not around. But Will, my son? He can't take care of himself. It's weird to think that I'm going to be a role model, that he's going to watch everything I do, listen to what I say. That he's going to learn how to be a man from me and the pack. But mainly from me. It makes me think about things before I do them or say them."

"Paul is already talking about a nursery," Rachel said, patting her husband's knee.

Jacob nodded. "Welcome to the panicked daddy club. If you need help, just give me a call. Or Embry. He's pretty good at cutting holes in the wall."

Rachel's eyes went wide and she turned on Paul, pointing a threatening finger at him. "Don't you even think about putting holes in my walls. I will kill you."

He looked at her, eyes wide, eyebrows in his hairline. "Not even for the baby?"

"Kill. You."

He nodded. "Got it."

Jacob's expression turned into "yikes". "Nevermind then. My bad. But still I'll help out if you need it."

Paul shrugged. "I think I'll be able to handle it."

"Are you going to find out what it is or be surprised?" I asked, reaching down to the diaper bag for a blanket. Jacob leaned forward to help me dig it out and spread it over my left shoulder where Will was still snoozing. "Thanks," I said with a grin. He grinned back, a hand rubbing over Will's back.

Paul and Rachel shared a look before they watched me and Jacob.

Paul shrugged. "Probably find out. I want to know."

"Me, too." Rachel nodded, one hand absently rubbing her belly, the other twined with Paul's.

Jacob and I shared another smile. It was relieving to see Rachel and Paul finally getting their family up and running. Will was going to have another cousin. Rocking him, I had hopes that our families would be close, our children protective of each other like brothers and sisters even if they had blood-siblings of their own. The next generation of the pack was well on its way now that the Volturi had been banished from our lands and our home was finally safe. No doubt many of the females, including myself, could be pregnant at the same time to varying degrees.

I could totally handle that, driving the men crazy. It was something to look forward to.

**TriciaPOV**

Christa, Walker, and I were sitting around the coffee table, laughing, when the front door opened and Embry came through. Getting up, I hot-footed it to the door to greet him with a kiss.

"Hey, hubby," I said grinning.

Chuckling, he bent down to meet my lips again. "Hi, wife."

"Mmm, I can handle that."

Behind us, Walker cleared his throat. Christa hit him.

Embry straightened up, sliding out of his jacket. I took it from him and hung it up. "So what's going on?"

Christa smiled over at us. "Wedding stuff. Only a month away. Alice is now in that mode where she wants to be left alone, so Tricia and I are working on the odds and ends."

"Ah, sounds like fun."

"Not really," Walker said.

"Oh hush you," I sneered. "Besides, it's break time. Dinner's ready."

Embry sniffed the air. "What did you make?"

"Chili. It's been cooking all day."

"What's chili?"

We turned to see Haleigh in the hallway, rubbing sleep from her eyes. She'd fallen asleep watching movies. Walker held out his arms and she went to him sleepily, cuddling up in his lap.

He kissed her forehead. "It's good stuff. You'll like it."

"Okay."

He and Christa stood up and followed me and Embry to the kitchen. Rolling up his sleeves, Embry went to the sink and scrubbed his hands all the way up to the middle of his forearm. I grated a block of cheddar cheese into a plastic bowl and then set it on the table while Walker and Christa served themselves out of the crockpot.

"So how's the wedding planning?" Embry asked when he sat down. I'd already gotten him a bowl. He added the cheese to his taste.

At the Johnson house, chili had always been served with Doritos for me and Walker, and other chips for Mom and Dad. That's how I served it now. Embry raised his eyebrows when I pulled out the Doritos but he didn't say anything when he ate the chili with a spoon. Haleigh, to my surprise, was a Doritos girl. Definitely part of this family.

Christa wiped her mouth with a napkin before she answered. "Intense. Alice is like a condensed tornado. And I can definitely tell that Cricket is her blood. I swear, those two should start a business." She looked at me. "This is really good. Thank you for feeding us."

I smiled. "Not a problem. I always make too much. Sometimes leftovers are good. Of course, I wasn't going to kick you guys out. Haleigh, do you like it?"

Munching on a chip, she nodded enthusiastically. "Mhm."

"Good. I'm glad. Are you excited about the wedding?"

She nodded again. Once she swallowed, and then licked her fingers of the cheesy goodness, she said, "I really like my dress, too. It matches yours and Aunt Morgan's."

"Well of course it does." I looked to Embry. "She's the flower girl," I said with importance.

He raised his eyebrows in an "ah" expression. He looked at Haleigh. "Did you get anything good for your birthday?"

Her entire face lit up, pretty blue eyes going wide. "Mommy and Daddy took me movie shopping!"

"Really? How many movies did you get?"

"Seven. That's how old I am."

Embry gave her a smile that was reserved especially for her. "That is pretty awesome."

"Daddy also took me to Seattle to get some books."

It was fun to watch him lean forward on his elbows, immersed in conversation with a seven year old. "Oh, you like to read?"

She frowned, shaking her head a little. "Well, I don't really know how. Daddy is teaching me." Her little shoulders drooped a little. "I'm slow, though."

Embry reached across the small table with a long arm and chucked her under the chin. "Hey, sweet pea, you'll get it. Hang in there, okay? It took me a long time to learn how to read."

"It did?"

He nodded. "Yeah. I was a late bloomer. And you are, too. But that's okay. The best kind of people are late bloomers."

Grinning happily, she munched on another chip.

The rest of dinner was spent talking about weddings, babies, other couples. We all predicted who would get pregnant next. Christa's bet was on me and Embry. I was all for her and Walker. Walker predicted Morgan and Lucas. Embry had to think about his bet. In the end, he said Sam and Emily, or Shelby and Seth. It was ironic that after that a pack wide text went out that Jacob's sister, Rachel, had announced that she and Paul were expecting. Our bets still stood though.

After Walker, Christa, and Haleigh left, Embry and I worked together to put up the food and clean the kitchen. From the set of his shoulders, I could tell that he was tired and stressed. He'd taken over Jacob's managerial duties when he'd been out on paternity leave. Even though Jake was back now, the shop was busier than ever, customers from Forks willing to drive to the rez for cheaper prices.

While he finished up the dishes, I went through the house, turning off lights. I dragged him back to the bedroom after the last bowl was put in the dishwasher, stripped him out of his shirts and sat him on the edge of the bed. Kneeling behind him, I started massaging his shoulders, neck, and upper arms.

"For a devil you sure do have some magical hands," he groaned, dropping his chin to his chest.

"You're really tense," I said, working out a tight muscle with the heel of my hand. "So, tell me, did you mean what you said to Haleigh? About being slow to learn to read?"

For a moment, silence stretched between us. And then he nodded. "Mom was more interested in trying to get my dad in my life, chasing after him, causing scenes. That's what I hear anyway. I never met the guy. But she...Every day I came home from school, she'd be drinking and watching her soaps in the dark. I'd ask her for help on my homework, give her teacher's notes for conferences. She never helped and never went. Some days, she was okay. We'd go to the park. She'd read me to sleep or sing to me. But those days were few and far between as I got older. Sam and I talked. I realized she got worse around the time that our dad took off, never to be heard from again."

Anger bubbled up inside me. If I were to ever meet that woman, I'd slap her. Couldn't she see that she had something more precious than a dead beat in her life? She had her son? Despite his upbringing, Embry was full of love and caring. But it also explained his penchant for rough in the bedroom. His aggression and dominance over me. And my acceptance of him and who he was.

His hands came back to stroke the backs of my thighs. Jerking on them, I was knocked off balance and fell against his back. As my chin rested on his shoulder, my hair came forward to brush over his arm and back.

He turned his head to face me, his lips brushing mine. "Don't be angry. I can smell it."

"You can?"

He nodded. "It's bitter, the smell of burning rubber. I don't like it. Think happy thoughts."

The reminder of one of my favorite childhood memories made me laugh. He smiled against my mouth. "That's better."

Sighing, I wrapped my arms around his shoulders and chest. My wedding ring caught a ray of moonlight through the window. "I just don't like hearing what she put you through. But I love the man you turned out to be from overcoming all of that. If that makes any sense."

His hand came up to dig through my hair so he could cup the back of my head. "It makes sense," he whispered before kissing me. "What do you say we try to help Christa win that bet?"

With his voice so low, like a bass thrumming through my body, a shiver danced down my spine. The hand that wasn't in my hair moved up to grip my ass hard. Instantly, I was aware of the heat of him seeping into me, over me. My breasts ached for his hands, his mouth.

"I'll take that as a yes," he growled, obviously sensing my body's immediate reaction to him.

Though he was clearly exhausted and stressed, he never once complained as he made love to me until dawn and the birds sang outside the windows.

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><p><strong>Bah! This chapter suuuuuuuuuuuucks! It was like trudging through mud! Hopefully the next one will come easier. And is it just me, or am I writing Nessie monotone? I feel like she's losing her peppiness. I just don't know! I guess I'm ready to be done with her and Jake and get to the kids' stories. I am so ready to write Will! Anywhozzle, I love you! Please review? xoxoxoxoxo<strong>


	9. Chapter 9

**Guys! I think I got my groove back. I'm kind of madly in love with this chapter, especially the LEMON! Omg, you just don't know. It totally surprised me. Not to be read in public places if you can't contain yourself. Seriously. Even I had issues in my own house. Anyway, you know how I said Ness was terribly monotone to me? Well, I played to it. So this chapter is about that. Only a couple more chapters left in this story before I move onto Jules! I'm keeping the third bundle of joy a secret! Bahahahahahaha**

***Disclaimer***

**Please enjoy!**

* * *

><p><strong>Mid-November<strong>

**JPOV**

The church was packed, and not with my pack, but with Walker's. His parents were slightly confused about the mass of people ranging in ages and races. Members of my pack were sitting in the far back except for me and Ness. Walker had glared at me when I had started ushering my wife to the back. Even Christa had given me a look that I could see down the back hallway where she was hiding so Walker wouldn't see her. Caught between the two glares, I shrugged and told Ness we needed to sit up front.

Will was in full nap mode. Hopefully he'd last through the whole ceremony. He'd started getting chatty when he was awake.

Since Haleigh had wanted to be the one to come out with Christa, Morgan and Tricia came out first in silvery dresses and yellow flowers.

Finally, the music started up that was the bride's entrance. We all stood up. Helping Ness up with Will reminded me of having to help her up just a few months ago when she was pregnant at Embry's wedding.

Haleigh led her adoptive mother into the church, throwing fake gold and silver petals. Christa had wanted nothing to do with white. Her dress was a dark gold sheath that loosely hugged the curves of her body. Her bouquet was full of yellow and grey roses. Her blonde curls were free around her shoulders. This was the most beautiful I'd ever seen her.

Looking up at Walker, he clearly thought so, too. His breathing was hitched, eyes glassy, throat working convulsively as he watched her walk toward them. Even though they were already married, it was good to know that they both could still have the normal reactions.

Eventually, she reached him and handed her bouquet to Morgan.

The ceremony was, thankfully, short, sweet, and to the point. Just the way Christa had wanted it. This wedding was more for the celebration that hadn't been able to take place after their actually marriage. The reception was held at the community center on the rez, which Alice and Rosalie had decorated.

Will finally woke up. When he did, Ness fed him. I burped him. And then we handed him off to be passed around the room. At first, Ness was nervous about letting him go, but with this many wolves and vampires around, I assured her that he was perfectly safe, especially with Edward watching his grandson through people's thoughts. All the speeches, toasts, and the couple's first dance were taken care of, so people were milling around.

Standing up, I held my hand down to Ness. "Come on. Come dance with me."

Laughing, she took my hand. "I love weddings."

Spinning her into my arms, I dipped her. "Maybe we should renew our vows?" I suggested, waggling my eyebrows.

She laughed again, that smile lighting up her face. "Not so fast, Romeo. We should wait a few years. But yes, Mr. Black. I would love to marry you again," she said as I righted her against my chest.

There was a giggle beside us. Walker was dancing with Haleigh close by, her little feet on his shoes. He was twirling her around, her hair a cape flying around her.

I looked back at Ness. "I want a little a girl."

She grinned. "Me, too. Think it's too early to start really trying?"

Too startled, I couldn't control my expression. For the past couple months, she'd been all about Will, more serious than she normally was, always watching after him. Now that he was getting older and was able to function better without help all the time, she was starting to glow more. Maybe it had been the fact that she'd barely left the house in the past three months. She hadn't been out among people even though a lot of the women visited the house. Now she was out, reassured that Will was safe, and she was having fun.

"Are you serious?" I asked.

She nodded. "Will's nearly three months old. If I get pregnant again sooner or later, he'll be a year old or so when the baby's born. If human couples can do it, we can." Her hand cupped my cheek. "I know I've been a little off lately. I just feel a little...constricted, I guess."

"From what?"

Her bare shoulders lifted in a shrug. "I don't know. I mean, I'm used to coming and going freely. Now I have to worry about Will because you're at work." Before I could say anything, she rushed on. "I'm not saying I want you to quit or to lower your work days. That's all fine. I also feel constricted because leaving Will with someone else while I do things makes me nervous, but also it makes me feel guilty. I'm his mother. I'm supposed to take care of him. And I'm tired of people hunting for me. I want to run with you in the woods like we used to."

I felt for her immediately. Really, I did. The first day I'd gone back to work after Will's birth was the hardest thing I'd ever done. My need to protect my mate and young had pulsed through me every minute I was away from them. It had nearly killed me. That day, when I'd come home, I'd wrapped her up in my arms and just held her. Then did the same with Will.

"Sweetheart, it's all about little steps. Letting him out of your sight, passing him around the room. That's good. And I know you know this, but maybe you need to hear it. Nobody in this room would let anything happen to him. These kids are the safest kids in the world right now."

"Having new mommy syndrome kick your ass?" a voice said beside us.

It was Shelby, standing there with her arms crossed over her stomach. She was grinning at Ness.

She motioned at me to step back. "Alright, daddy-o. Move. The mommies need to talk. Scooch."

Laughing, I let go of Nessie so Shelby could take my place. Having been dismissed, I went to find Billy, who was no doubt hogging my son.

**ShelbyPOV**

Resting my hands on my best friend's hips, I couldn't help but think that we finally had traded places. Brayden was now a year old and walking. Seth was busy following him around, trying to keep up with him. I'd watched the anxiousness on Nessie's face as she'd handed Will off to be passed around.

"So, you gonna tell me why you shooed my husband off?" she asked, her hands on my shoulders. We were swaying back and forth even though the music wasn't the least bit slow.

"Eh, he's gonna find your son so he can report back he's _just fine_."

She sighed. "I know, I know. But-"

"Uh, uh, uh. Listen up, buttercup. You told me to tell you when you were doing the worried mommy thing when lecturing me about it. So I'm puttin' that shoe on the other foot, honeybunch." She smiled and I sobered up. "Seriously, though. You're acting weird. Nobody sees you anymore. And I'm your next door neighbor. You're our alpha female. We want to go shopping, have play dates, gossip with you."

Her teeth worried at her bottom lip. "I know, but-"

Glaring at her, I said, "No 'buts', Ness. As much as you want to, you can't keep Will locked up forever. I know the world makes you nervous now, but seriously, you gotta dip your toes back in some time. I heard you with Jake. Leave Will with me one day and go hunting together. Have some couple time, alright? Seriously, it'll do you some good. Work on making the second kid."

She gave me a withering look. "Are you and Seth working on a second?"

I shrugged, unfazed by her expression. "Maybe. Just like Jake, he wants to try for a girl. I'm not sure what I would do with a girl, but I can try. Look, after I had Brayden, I wasn't sure that I wanted another one. But I changed my mind. I do want one. I don't want Brayden to be an only child. It was a lonely childhood, even with both parents around. Just come down to Emily's with me one day. Leila's huge. We both just sit in the living room and chat. Claire watches over Brayden, Leila, and Henry. Will needs interaction with other kids. Otherwise, he's gonna end up like me. Horrible people skills and a mouth that will blurt anything. Do you really want him to end up like me?"

That made her laugh, and it tugged at my heart. I hadn't heard her laugh, really laugh, in weeks.

Reaching up, I stroked her cheeks. "I know being a mom makes you feel like you have to be serious where other people are all melting from the cuteness, but Nessie, you can't be this distant. You have to interact with the world. And so does Will. I love you. And I love that baby boy. Soon he's going to be walking. Already he's three months old, or close enough. The next minute, he's going to be a year old and walking. Then running. Then he's going to want to go out into a field to play football with the kids he grew up with, crushing on girls, phasing, imprinting. But he needs you to give him that push into the public eye. This," I said motioning to the crowd, "is a good start."

That lip was back between her teeth as she looked around the room. For once, she wasn't looking for Jacob and their son. She was just studying the people. A lot of Jacob's pack was hanging around, watching out for us. Walker's pack was trying to grab his attention. Over the past few months, all of us had gotten closer, the packs mingling and hanging out. A lot of the guys would go the large empty field where the battles tended to take place to play football or some other sport. Many members of Jacob's pack had gone to the land where Walker's pack was building their village to help out where they could. Everything was falling into place. All the children were getting along, chasing each other at the bonfires that were held every month. Shannon, Xavier's girlfriend, had finished high school and had moved out to stay with him in his cabin with Walker's pack. She was going to take online courses at a college to earn a business degree. Rachel had also enrolled in the same classes. The two had become homework buddies. Both packs were melding, becoming a family.

Calahan and Emma had moved their pack south to take over the land that Walker's pack had left behind. Those in their pack that had wanted to stay had permission from Calahan, Walker, and Jacob. It was a surprise to nobody when Rhett stayed to be with Adam and Derek. The three still wanted to travel, but not yet. They all had grabbed some jobs and were saving up for a massive trip.

"These people are our family, Ness," I said quietly. "None of them would ever let anything happen to Will. I trust them with Brayden. And they're all worried about you. You're the alpha of alpha females. Even Walker's females look to you, especially after what you did for us all. The protection you placed on the Children of the Moon. They respect you. Therefore, they worry over you just like I do."

Chocolate eyes met mine, tears creating a sheen of gloss over the color. She cleared her throat. "When are you going to Emily's next?"

Grinning, I hugged her. "Oh, baby girl. I love you so much. Usually our play dates are on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Maybe we can get Haleigh as a regular, too. Claire would love to see her."

"Go where?"

Pulling away from Ness, we saw Haleigh standing beside us, swishing her dress around her legs, her doll clutched in her hands.

Ness crouched down, brushing her fingers through Haleigh's hair. "Maybe your mommy will let you come over to Emily's to play with the babies and Claire. Would you like that?"

She brightened up. "And Will's gonna be there?"

Ness glanced at me before nodding. "Yeah. We're going to start going, too."

"Yay! Can I go ask mommy?"

Laughing, Nessie turned her around and gave her a little push. "Yes, go! Shoo!"

Giggling, Haleigh took off into the crowd.

I grinned at my best friend.

"What?" she asked.

I shook my head. "You need a little girl, one just like you. That would be too freaking adorable. I'd choke on the cuteness."

One of her hands went to her stomach thoughtfully. "Do you think it's too early to start trying for a second?"

"Nah. But I do think that you need to try to get back into your groove so you're not dealing with two kidlets and dealing with anxiety."

She shot me a look. "I do not have anxiety."

I just quirked an eyebrow and crossed my arms.

Sighing, her shoulders drooped. "Okay, maybe a little. But I'm doing okay right now."

"Yes, you are," I commended. "And that's great. It really is. I'm proud." Reaching out, I gripped her hand. "Come on. Let's go outside. Get some air."

As expected, anxiousness touched her eyes. "I don't know."

"Ness, baby steps. You managed to let him go in a crowd. Now let's dip another toe in. Come outside with me. You said you were feeling constricted. This is an excellent time to step into a little more freedom. Just for ten minutes."

"Five."

"Okay, five. Unless you want to stay longer."

"I doubt that," she said, but allowed me to pull her to the doors that led into a little courtyard with a fountain.

The air was cool and crisp. I wasn't cold but I could see Ness shiver. She wrapped her hands on her arms and looked up at the sky. For once, there weren't any clouds hovering. The stars shone brightly down through the trees as well as moonlight. Closing her eyes, she took a deep, smooth breath and let it out through her mouth.

Being as blunt as I was, I blurted, "Are you depressed?"

Swinging her head toward me, she blinked at me in surprise. But at least she stopped to think about the question. "I don't think so," she finally said, slowly. "I mean, I get enough sleep. I love Will. I eat when I get hungry. No body aches." Flushing, she went on. "I had the same thought and looked up the symptoms. I feel fine. There's no way to really explain how I feel, though. My whole world changed when I had him. Being responsible for myself was challenging enough for me. But now I'm responsible for him because Jacob works every day except the weekends. And I feel like this needs to be taken seriously. He's my child."

Gripping her shoulder, I turned her toward me. "He is your child, yes. But that doesn't mean that you have to give up who you are."

"And who exactly am I?"

I gave her a look. "That's the easiest question you've ever asked me."

Another blink. "Really?"

"Mhm. You're Renesmee Cullen...Black. Full of life, love, and laughs. You care about everyone, want to see them happy. You're selfless, rarely selfish. You risked your life to protect people you don't even know and will probably never meet. Not taking people's shit but being nice about it is your middle name. It's disgusting, really, how nice you are. And you're a lot more lively than you've been lately. You're my best friend, my sister. Let me help you. Let me pull you out of this. Especially if you want all those kids. Let the other moms help, too. I'm sure Emily can help. She helped me."

Surprise made her turn back to me. "She did?"

I nodded. "Because it took her so long to get pregnant with Leila, she was always freaking out. Remember how hard it was to get her to leave Leila with you and Jake so she and Sam could have some alone time? She didn't let it show to other people, but she knew she was smothering Leila by not letting her go. So she forced herself, for Leila. Talking to her would help."

Nessie turned back to the stars and nodded. "You're right. I've been...strange lately. And it's not me."

"Ness?"

Light spilled over the courtyard from the open door. Jacob was standing there with a questioning look on his face. Nessie turned toward him and, seeing that he didn't have Will, demanded where he was.

Jacob smirked, stepping out the door. "He's fine. Bells has him right now. She's fending off the wolves."

Despite her worry she smiled. I laughed.

"You must be freezing," he said, shrugging out of his suit coat. "Here, take this." He wrapped it around her shoulders and kissed her head. When all she did was stare at him, his expression became worried. "Everything okay?"

Her eyes slid to me and I took the hint. "I'm just going to go make sure Seth hasn't let Brayden put his face in the cake."

And then I went inside, leaving them to talk.

Our table was near the door. Seth was sitting down with Brayden on his lap, feeding him a banana. As soon as he saw me though, he wiggled, trying to get off Daddy's lap. Seth put him on his feet, steadying him, before Brayden clumsily ran to me, grinning, showing off his teeth.

Scooping him up, I perched him on my hip. "Hey, big boy!"

He smiled, making his "talking" sounds.

Seth followed him, and kissed me when he reached me. "Everything okay?" he asked, his arm winding around my waist to pull me toward him.

I nodded. "Ness is having problems with anxiety with Will. I'm just trying to help her get some separation to let her know it's possible."

"Ah, like we had to do with you."

"Yeah."

Brayden's slobbery hand plunged down my dress to grip my bra.

Seth laughed when I jumped and slumped down at the touch. "That's my son," he said proudly.

"If he ends up being gay, I'm gonna tell him about this just to torture him."

"Mama."

I froze and looked at Brayden. Seth moved so that he was standing beside me.

"Did he just-"

Brayden's grin grew when Seth had stood next to me. "Da...da."

"Oh my god," Seth said, breathlessly. "He just..."

Laughing, I hugged Brayden to me, pressing my head to his. Lately, he'd been so close to talking that it was frustrating. I'd sworn I'd heard him say it before at his nap time over the baby monitor, but I hadn't been sure. Since then, I'd been trying to get him to talk. I didn't care if his first word was "no". I just wanted to hear his voice.

"Seth? Shelby? Everything okay?"

Sue was standing in front of us, looking worried.

"Mom," Seth said. "He just talked."

Her eyes went wide. "What?"

He shook his head. "Plain as day, I swear to God. He just said 'mama' and 'dada', one right after the other, looking at us."

He gurgled in my arms, his little sharp teeth chewing on his hand. I motioned to Seth. "Babe, get his teething ring. He's starting to chew on his hand."

Seth dug out the semi-frozen ring from the diaper bag. Removing Brayden's hand from his mouth, Seth placed the ring in his hand, which then went straight back to his mouth. He gnawed on it.

Getting excited, he started kicking and moving in my arms. But he was watching Seth. Reaching out his chubby arms, he said again, "Dada."

Sue's hand went to her mouth as she teared up.

Seth had to clear his throat as he reached for his son, taking him into his arms. Leaning his forehead against Brayden's, he whispered, "It's about time, son."

I started crying with Sue.

**RPOV**

"Everything okay?" Jacob asked, coming up behind me.

"I'm not depressed," I blurted.

Jacob's hands rested on my shoulders, rubbing over where his jacket covered me. "I didn't say you were. Ness, what's going on?"

"Shelby and I talked. I'm anxious. But I'm also not...happy, exactly." Turning around, I saw his expression turn wary. "I'm not depressed. I guess, I'm not happy with myself, with how I've turned into a homebody. Shelby invited me to play dates with her and Emily. I accepted. Will needs to have interactions with other kids, to learn and grow up. And I am going to be better at letting other people take care of him so you and I can be together, can be the couple we were before. You know, the fun-loving couple." Taking a deep breath, I finished by saying, "Also, it's selfish, but I want more time with you than just nights and weekends. I know you love your work and being important there, but I need you home with us, too. I know I said I was okay with you working so much, but...I'm not."

For a long moment, he just stared at me, studying me. His expression was carefully blank. No anger, but also no comfort, either.

"Say something? Please?"

His breath puffed out in a white cloud when he sighed. Putting one hand in his pocket, he used the other to rub his forehead. "I'm not quite sure what to say, to be honest. Why didn't you tell me all this before?" His tone held a note of accusation but I could tell he was trying to hold most of it back.

Swallowing hard, I said, "Because I didn't want to think about it too hard. I didn't want to think that there was something wrong with me. Talking about it tonight and Shelby forcing me outside away from Will helped me realize that she's right. I haven't been myself lately. And it has nothing to do with Will. He's perfect. It was me. I just closed us away even though we had visitors. And I thought you'd be around more."

Lowering his hand, he glared at me. "That's not fair, Ness. You said you were fine with me going back to work when I first went. It was hard as hell for me, but I did it."

Shivering despite the warmth cocooning me, I said, "And I meant it then. I didn't think you'd be working all the time though. I figured you'd give yourself more days off through the week. I thought I'd be able to do the housewife thing, but I can't, Jacob. Not full time like this. I want you home. I miss you."

Going from rigid angry to weary, he sighed and came to me, wrapping me up in his arms. "What days are the play dates with Emily and Shelby?"

"Monday, Wednesday, and Friday," I said, wrapping my arms around his waist. The shivering stopped.

He nodded. "Okay. I'll talk to Frank. Tell him those are the only days I can work. Even assistant managers need days off."

"Is he going to be okay with that?"

Jacob shrugged. "He's going to have to be. My wife needs me. Besides, Embry's the manager after me. He can open and close shop when needed."

Gripping him tighter, my chin trembled as I tried to hold back the tears. "Thank you, Jacob. I'm sorry I didn't tell you."

His fingers tightened on my hips. "Nessie, all you have to do is tell me that you need me, and I'll be there. You're right. I'm not home enough if I didn't catch how bad it was, so both of us can be blamed for it. But we'll work it out, alright?"

I nodded, pressing my cheek over his heart while he held me. I felt his chin rest on the top of my head. "At least I know I can be away from him now," I said in a pouting voice.

He laughed, the sound rumbling against my ear. "Yeah, that's true. I love you, baby."

"I love you, too."

He hugged me tighter, kissing the top of my head. "Why don't we go back inside? See who's won the tug-of-war over our son."

I nodded in agreement and he led me inside. As he held the door open for me, I felt better. Not all the way, but enough to know that I could do this. Jacob and I had both been away from Will at the same time and nobody had come running outside to tell us something had happened. It was okay.

We were going to be okay.

* * *

><p><strong>RPOV<strong>

Quite a few more weeks passed. It was now a week before Christmas, and I was feeling better than ever. Jacob and I had taken Will to Seattle to shop for him. Over the past few weeks, I'd gone with Shelby to Emily's three days a week. At first, my heart had broken because Will didn't recognize the other kids. But after a couple visits, he started smiling at Claire and Haleigh when they'd sit on the floor with him. Claire was old enough to watch over them so Shelby, Emily, and I had started moving into the kitchen to talk and laugh, gossiping about our men. I decided to invite Rachel and Christa over as well. Christa only came over every now and then because she was getting housework done, but Rachel loved to come over. She was showing just a little when she moved just right. My excitement for her grew every time I saw her. She was positively glowing.

Jacob and I had actually started trying to get pregnant again, making love every time Will took a nap or at night when he passed out. Nothing so far, but that was okay. I knew I could get pregnant. Will was evidence of that. The first week that Jacob had put his new schedule into effect, Jacob and I had sat down after Will had gone down for a nap and talked. He'd pulled my feet into his lap and rubbed them. And then he'd pulled me over so that I was straddling his hips and commenced the hottest make out session we'd had in a long time, even put the mark on my chest that had faded long ago. He'd left me breathless and panting while he took care of Will when he'd woken up. Every time I thought about that now, I bit my lip and rubbed my thighs together, wanting my man every damn time.

Tonight, I had a surprise for him.

**JPOV**

When I walked into the house, something felt off. No lights welcomed me. Everything was dark except the embers burning down in the fireplace.

Frowning, I tossed my jacket onto the back of the couch and locked the door behind me. "Ness?"

I checked my watch. Five-thirty, the same time I always came home.

Looking toward the stairs that led to our bedroom, I saw a faint, flickering light. Like candles. Quirking an eyebrow, I walked over there and looked down. Yup. Candle and firelight danced on the walls. Slowly, I made my way down the stairs. When I reached the bottom, I nearly swallowed my tongue at the same time that my body got so hard so fast that it hurt.

Nessie was on the bed on top of a blood-red comforter I'd never seen before. Tons of candles flickered around the room as well as the fireplace. The yellow light painted Nessie's naked skin in warmth and shadows, highlighting a curl of her hair or the curve of her shoulder as it flickered. She was only wearing a pair of tiny panties and black stockings. That was it. Her hair draped over her shoulders artfully to cover her breasts. Chocolate eyes gleamed, sparking from the light as she smirked at me.

I was going to ask where Will was, but the words died in my throat.

She laughed. It was deep and sexy, like she knew what effect she was having on me. "Will's at Shelby's. For the night."

My eyes met hers when I realized what she meant. Clearing my throat, I looked to the open nursery door and back to her. "So...the house is ours?"

She nodded, lips quirking sexily. "For the first time in four months, yes."

This. This was the woman I knew. Slowly, she'd been coming back to me over the past few weeks. I blamed myself for her disappearing because I hadn't been around. Now, she and I had been spending more time together, personal time, and she was doing much better. Her leaving Will with Shelby _for the night_ was a big step. We'd been starting slow by leaving Will with Bella while we went out to eat for an hour, and then longer while we went shopping for a few hours. Working slowly to letting her separate herself from motherhood to just remembering who she was as a person. Hunting, being free to run, had been a big help. She hadn't felt helpless or hindered by having to be careful.

Moving around on the bed, she crawled to the foot of it on all fours, her hair still acting as a curtain. I was close enough that she could reach out, sink her fingers into the waistband of my jeans and yank me forward. She met my body with hers, straightening up. Heat slammed into me when she looked at me from under her eyelashes, her hair falling forward to caress her face. Those white teeth slipped over her bottom lip, but not to worry at it, as she tip-toed her forefinger and middle finger up my chest. All I could do was watch her, pressing her body against mine, her soft belly rubbing my erection through my jeans.

When her fingers made it to the collar of my t-shirt, she flipped her eyes up to give me the sexiest, wildest look just before she gripped my shirt with both hands and ripped it down the front. My body flexed with the jerk, keeping me from tipping forward. Setting her nails in my skin, she caught the edges of the shirt with her wrists, pulling it off my arms like a jacket.

There was nothing gentle in the way she touched me or looked at me. It was all animal. All feral. And because of that, my wolf floated into my consciousness, watching her with my eyes.

"Take your boots off," she demanded in a low voice, her fingers going back down the waistline of my jeans.

I did as she commanded and slipped out of my boots and then my socks.

In a move too fast for me to comprehend, she gripped my jeans with one hand, my arm with the other, turned, and threw me onto the bed. We'd never really tested her vampire speed or strength before. The fact that she could lift me and throw me was sexy as hell. I hadn't even stopped bouncing on the bed before she was on me.

She crawled up between my legs, her hands trailing ahead of her. Gripping my jeans the way she had my shirt, she lifted the material so it was away from my body and jerked until it ripped apart, freeing my pounding erection. Her palm stroked up the length and up my stomach, over my chest to trace her fingers over my lips just as her tongue flicked out to lick me. Another spasm rocked me when she continued to lap at my skin like it was her favorite piece of candy. When her lips closed around the head of me without help from her other hand, my breath exploded against her fingers.

And then she quit teasing me.

Without warning, she slipped every inch of me into her mouth and down her throat, sucking me down. The red comforter probably wouldn't make it through the next few minutes with my fists balled up into it, straining the fabric.

Well, it might.

To my surprise, she reached out for one of my hands and pressed it into her hair. Coming up off me, she licked her lips and said, "Put me where you want me. Whatever you want."

Now my wolf wanted in on the play. He wanted us to push her mouth over us, to keep her there. "Get my jeans off," I said, my voice edging toward a growl.

She did as I told her, jerking them down my legs until she was the only one wearing something. And those panties were definitely not going to last long.

When she was back to kneeling in front of me, I gripped her head and moved her so her closed lips brushed me. "Suck me down."

I felt her take a deep breath before opening her mouth as wide as it would go and sliding over me until her lips hit my body. The wolf loved this, forcing me to keep her there, even as we felt her throat constrict around us. And the trust in her eyes just fueled the heat. She knew we'd never hurt her. The moment she jerked her head, we let her up, air whistling down her lungs.

Mouth poised over me after she recovered, she just watched me.

Groaning, I pressed my head back into the pillows. "Just suck me, Ness. Please."

It was a heartbeat later that I felt her small hand grip the base of me, where I was thickest, before slipping her mouth over me. She gave me a moment to calm down. And then she bobbed fast, her mouth suctioning me, cheeks hollowing out. With her hair surrounding her and tickling my thighs, I could see her breasts sway with her movements.

I cracked.

"Ness, I'm-"

Never got the rest out before my back and stomach burst with tension, my balls burst as my orgasm raced to freedom. Everything I had from the moment I saw her on the bed flew from me to be swallowed down by her. She took everything that my body could give out just as she always did.

And then I was done for the moment, breathing heavily as she eased away from me, sitting back on her knees. She was resplendent in the flickering candlelight. Her copper curls shone and danced even though she sat still. Those eyes were darker than just milk chocolate, something dark and rich with a bitter aftertaste like her mood. Sweet and dangerous all at the same time.

With a finger, I beckoned her to come closer. Nessie crawled over me sensuously, her knees planting on either side of my hips, her hands on my shoulders. Instantly, I was hard again as if her mouth had never been on me. Want pulsed through me, the wolf grinding my teeth, wanting to be rough, wanting to pound into her until she screamed for us. Reaching up, I brushed her hair back and then gripped it at the roots, jerking. A little gasp slipped through her parted lips in surprise, but not pain. In fact her eyes became heavy-lidded, her breathing erratic. She'd always liked a little pain with her sex. I rolled us so that I was on top, using my knees to spread her thighs wider, opening her core for me.

No oral for her. She was going to stay tight and wet, just the way I liked her. Growing my claws, the wolf taking over another inch, I was careful in her hair, but moved my other hand down her body to get rid of the offending red fabric separating us. I'd keep the stockings; I wasn't that stupid. When the strap of the underwear snapped, she gasped again. But this was a mix of pain and surprise. Looking down, I realized that I'd nicked her when a bread of read marked her skin.

Surprisingly not panicking, I looked up at her face. She was smiling devilishly at me. "That felt good," she whispered.

She reached for my wrists and moved my hands so that they were on her breasts, palming her. Her back arched off the bed, pink lips releasing another moan. "So warm. Fuck me, Jacob. Let your wolf take me."

The human me was too far gone to even argue. My fingers flexed on her, the claws barely puncturing her skin. But it was enough. Ten beads of blood welled up on her skin, five over and around each breast.

"Yes," she breathed, and then squirmed. "Please, Jake. I need you inside me."

Didn't have to tell me twice. With a little positioning, I thrust inside her so good and deep. Her back arched of the bed, throat a nice clean line as she let out a yell. Her breasts were offered up to me, the beaded blood sliding over her smooth skin. Lifting her hands as if to grab at my skin to dig her nails in, I grabbed her wrists. Not tonight. Tonight, I'd be doing the bloodletting. Before I started my pounding, I raised her hands over her head and held them both easily in one of my hands. The other went to grip her hip hard to hold her where I wanted her as I started to hammer into her relentlessly with no warning. The sound of skin smacking skin was immediate, fast, and harsh in the room, echoing off the walls. She was wet, that wetness soaking my hips and thighs as I pounded deep and hard and fast. I knew the wolf was pushing my body, making me a machine. I'd never made love to her this hard, this fast, or this deep. But she didn't seem to mind. And neither did the wolf.

He was getting what he wanted.

Her screams were one continuous, pleasure-filled chorus. Back permanently arched, her breasts scraped against my chest, her blood smearing over my skin, too. He liked it. The wolf liked her blood on us. It was almost like her marks on me were signs to the other guys that the sex was good. Our lack of self-control in marking her was a sign that, one: this was our female, and two: that she drove us to pleasure in such a way that we lost our composure.

So, without my ordering it to, my free hand lightly slid down her back to her side and around her front. We didn't want to hurt her, but we wanted our mark on her. Blood flowed, popping up like mushrooms after a rain as my hand moved in to end at her lower stomach. Not one sound of pain from her, just more moans, louder screams as my shaft continuously impaled her over and over. We'd both be hurting tomorrow, but something told me it would be well worth it.

Somewhere in all the movement, she managed to wrap her legs around my thighs, locking her ankles. In one quick roll, she flipped me onto my back and get her hands out of my grasp. A growl slipped between her bared teeth, lips pulled back in a snarl. Hands on my chest, she rode me, circling her hips, dancing over my hips.

After a moment, she stretched up, sitting up straight. She brought her hands up, sliding over her blood-smeared skin, over her neck and up into her hair, balling it up in her fists against her head. Ringlets fell to brush her shoulders and breasts.

A goddess. That's what came to mind. She was a golden vampire goddess, her body firmly on mine, putting me as deep as I could go, her hips swinging in a dance that seemed to conjure up a sort of hypnotic power. There was no way I could keep my hands off of her, which meant my claws scraped more of her skin. She didn't open her eyes to look at me when I placed my palms against her shoulder blades, drawing down over her ass, claws dragging over her skin. And I wanted the marks that I'd made on her side to have a matching set, so I put my hand on her back once more, drew it down her side, and over the front of her stomach. I knew more blood was filling the scratches, flowing over her pale skin. And God help me that the thought took me higher.

So high that I exploded between one sway of her hips and the next. Gripping her hips, I knew I'd punctured her deeper than I had the rest of her body, but I couldn't bring myself to be too worried when she exploded with a scream to the ceiling, body arched sensuously. We both pulsed together, her body milking me, mine emptying into her.

Every muscle in my body was taut, muscles straining. Her hands came down to grip my wrists, nails paying me back by bleeding me, leaving bracelets of blood behind. I could so live with that.

After some tense moments where I was sure my heart had stopped beating, she collapsed on top of me, breathing hard. Her entire body was trembling, jerking on top of me with aftershocks. The wolf inside me retreated, curling up, content. My claws drew back into my hands so I hugged her tightly to my chest. Leaning up, I kissed her sweaty curls.

"Dear god," she panted. "That felt good."

Laughing was a bad idea with how sensitive I was still inside her, but I couldn't help it. I hissed and she jerked at the sensation.

"Sorry," I muttered, moving my hips so that I fell out of her.

Slowly, as if she were moving through mud, she reached back to pat her hand over her hip. When she brought it back to her face, blood was smeared on it. A sliver of worry shot through me. What if she'd liked it in the moment, but would decide I'd abused her once the hormones died down?

"You bled me," she said, blinking blankly at her hand. As I was opening my mouth to apologize, she looked up at me and smiled. "About damn time."

It was my turn to blink blankly at her. "What?"

Her grin lifted more at one corner so it was a smirk. "All the times I've bled you and you're just now bleeding me? About time. You must have had a real choke hold on that wolf of yours until now."

Relief replaced the worry. I chuckled. "Yeah well, tonight you were more animal than you were anything. Or I should say a goddess."

"Goddess?"

I nodded. "That's the thought I had when you flipped us and started riding me like you owned me." I stroked her hair as she flushed. "Skin painted with gold candlelight. Hair shining copper. A look of euphoria on your face. Blood seeping down your skin every time you swung your hips on me. A golden vampire goddess. My goddess. All mine."

Grinning, she kissed under my chin. "Goddess, huh? I think I can live with that." Snuggling down against me, her lips pressed into my chest. "This goddess needs to rest her body. It took a delicious beating tonight."

"Mmm, anything you want. I do belong to you."

Her purr vibrated from her chest to mine. "Pretty sure I owned you tonight."

Knowing I could go with the dirty talk, I chose something more romantic.

Kissing her hair, I whispered, "You've owned me from the moment we first met."

Purring again, she fell asleep on top of me, a smile painting her perfect lips.

**RPOV**

The next morning, I woke to Jacob's soft touch on my back. I was on my stomach in the silk sheets under the comforter though I couldn't remember sliding between them. The blanket was down around my waist, the silk cold where neither my nor Jacob's body heat had reached it. Turning my head, I saw that he was raised up on his elbow, fingers lightly tracing my skin.

Stretching out a little, and feeling tight skin, I smiled. "Good morning."

He returned the grin. "Morning." His dark eyes went back to my body. "Do they hurt?" he asked quietly.

That was when I realized he was tracing the claw marks he'd set into my skin last night.

"No," I whispered. "They'll probably sting in the shower, but I like them."

"Good. I do, too."

That surprised me. Leaning up on my own elbows, still on my stomach, I looked at him. "Really? I figured you'd be having a fit, expecting me to yell at you or something."

A corner of his mouth lifted. "What you said last night reassured me. I _was_ worried at first when you saw the blood. But then you told me it was about time. I think I've finally learned to trust you about this stuff. And the wolf."

Arching my hips up, I felt a tug on my lower body that wasn't sex aches. Rolling onto one elbow, I looked down my body. On each side, a series of five scratches framed my torso, wrapping around from my back, down over my ribs, to end between my hipbones, just over my panty line.

A low growl made me look up. Jacob was studying my body, eyes fixed on my breasts, lowering down to the apex of my thighs. Looking down at his body, I saw that he was full and ready to go.

Just as my phone rang.

"You should get that," he said in a quiet voice as if he were restraining himself from throwing my phone against the wall and taking me anyway.

Shivering, I rolled over and grabbed my phone.

"Hello?"

"Hey, buttercup." Shelby.

"Hey. Good morning."

She snorted. "Man, you must have some serious after-glowing going on if you think it's still morning."

"Well what time is it?"

"Two-thirty. I'm calling to ask if you want me to bring Will back or if you're going to come get him."

Looking over at my husband's dark eyes that were still glued to my body, I swallowed hard and said, "Any chance you could keep him for the day? I'll pay you or something..."

"Shut up," she said disgustedly. "Of course I'll keep him. Are you kidding? This is good, great! Have some bed time with the hubby. Your son is happy and safe over here. We're just gonna watch cartoons all day anyway."

"Thank you," I managed to get out as Jacob swam through the cool sheets to put his hands on my body, hand moving down between my legs, lips on my breast.

"Not a problem. Now get to work. I'll talk to you later."

"Uh-huh," I muttered before hanging up.

Reaching over, Jacob grabbed my phone and tossed it onto the floor where it bounced on the carpet and then slid across the bathroom tile.

"I'm not done with you yet," he growled against my skin.

And then he proceeded to show me in which ways he wasn't done.

* * *

><p><strong>Gah! So happy with this chapter. I'm peeking around my writer's block and trying to knock it down brick by brick, so please let me know how you feel. Not a big chapter for Will, but definitely for Brayden, Shelby, and Seth! So please review! I wanna know! Love you!xoxoxoxoxoxo<strong>


	10. Chapter 10

**Okay so, this chapter is suuuuuuuuper short. And it's the last of this story! Yeah, I know, it sneaked up on me, too. Some of you won't like the way I've ended it, but I felt that it was time to move on even though I love William! But never fear! I will be back ASAP with what happens next. Remember, Jules is up next. And I'm still not telling about the third! It was a surprise in the dream and will stay that way until Nessie and Jacob are good and ready to tell you!**

***Disclaimer***

**Please Enjoy.**

* * *

><p><strong>February<strong>

**RPOV**

While the phone against my ear rang, I quietly closed the door to the nursery and went upstairs. Toys were scattered around the house as were blankets and bottles. Even a pacifier under the playpen when I moved it off against the wall. While Will was down for the count, I was going to super clean this house. I'd already tested how thick and sound proof the floors were with the vacuum. It was all good.

"Hello?"

"Oh, hey, Shannon?" I asked.

"Yes. Nessie?"

"Yep. Hey how are you?"

"I'm great, thanks. What about you?"

Carrying some empty bottles to the sink, I tossed them in and started the process of cleaning them out. "I'm good, actually. I had a question for you if you're not busy."

There was some rustling on her end. "No, not at all. I actually need a break from all the studying. The only time I can study is when Xavier is at the shop. So what's up?"

Once the water in the sink had heated up, I'd started scrubbing the bottles out. "Well, Jacob and I were wondering if you'd like to start making a little extra money by watching Will for us on occasion."

"Really?" she said excitedly. "Like babysitting?"

"Yeah. Jacob planned an early Valentine's for us because he knows I hate going out on the actual day because of all the cute couples, so you would still have the big day for you and Xavier. We're going into Seattle just for a night. You could stay at the house or Will could stay with you and Xavier. Give you guys some experience. Goodness knows you two are going to be thinking kids eventually."

Instead of sounding like a horrified teenager, she laughed. "He would love that. Xavier loves that baby. And he's already talking kids and marriage. Man is driving me nuts. I'd like to get my degree first and out of the way."

"That," I said, "is good thinking. Exactly what you should do, especially if you plan on working after a baby."

More rustling and then what sounded like a screen door closed. She must have gone outside because the sound of birds calling out was loud and clear. "Rachel, Cricket, and I have been talking about it. We'd love to open a little gift shop of sorts, you know? It would be fun. Like a pack family business, kind of how the shop is going for the guys, but something for the girls."

"That does sound pretty cool. I think it's a wonderful idea."

"Thanks. And to answer your question, yes, I will gladly watch him. I'd rather stay at your place since you have everything he needs there. If that's okay."

"That's perfectly fine. Xavier is welcome, too. There's an extra bedroom for grown-ups on the third floor."

She laughed. "So many babies. I wonder who's next other than Rachel."

That made me laugh. "Oh, there could be quite a few of us pregnant at the same time. Our one major enemy has agreed to truce. We're all safe now, so like someone told me, it's probably going to be a baby boom of our own. Our war is over."

"The way I hear it, you were amazing out there."

Chuckling, I dried out the bottles and put them neck down on a towel. "You shouldn't believe everything you hear. I just did what I had to in order to protect my family and other families. It's not something you think of as amazing because you're terrified the whole time that maybe they have more cards to bring to the table than you do. We were just lucky that it worked out in our favor."

"Well, whatever it was that you did, thanks. As both the girlfriend of a Child of the Moon and a woman from the rez, you saved both of my worlds."

Touched, I tried to speak normally. "Aw, well, you're welcome, sweetheart." I did have to clear my throat. "So Jacob made plans for Friday the twelfth. We come back on the thirteenth."

"Oh sure, this weekend. Let me just go write that down. Don't want to forget even though that's just the day after tomorrow. Do you have internet connection? I might have an assignment due."

"Yes, we do. We'll leave you the wi-fi password with all the instructions for Will. Don't worry, I won't leave you a novel. He's pretty easy to take care of. But he has started teething. Those suckers are sharp. He has teething rings, but he also likes the cold washcloths to chew on."

"Got it. And I just wrote it down. I'll let Xavier know when he gets home unless Jake has talked to him."

"He might, but he knew I was going to call you today." There was a knock on the door. I checked the clock on the wall. Shoot. Shelby. Holding the phone from my ear, I called, "Come on in."

"Oh you have company. I'll let you go. Gotta get back to studying."

"Oh sure. Thank you so much."

"Not a problem."

We hung up. Just in time, too, because Brayden was already tottering over to me with a big grin. I scooped him up while Shelby just the door.

"Mama," he said toothily.

Chuckling, I shook my head. "Oh no. I'm not mama."

Shelby shook her head. "Every woman he sees is mama. And every man is dada. He's just excited he can talk now. Seth is well on his way to teaching him how to say no now that he's helping Frank set up the new shop here in Forks. Bastard."

That made me laugh. "Hey, language. He'll start copying you soon."

She glowered. "Yeah, yeah, yeah. Where's your rugrat?"

"Napping, thank goodness. I need to clean this house a little. Jacob is pulling him around, trying to get him to crawl, so blankets and toys are everywhere. I'm beginning to understand why parents hate Christmas when they have little ones."

Shelby rolled her eyes. "Amen to that. Luckily Brayden mostly got clothes."

At the sound of his name, he turned toward her and reached out. "Mama."

Her smile was proud and emotional as she reached for him. "Now you got the right one. How's Will doing with the teething?"

"My heart breaks when he starts screaming. He used to sleep through most of the night but not now. Now he's up all the time."

"Maybe he'll get like Brayden. After the third tooth, he was used to it. Didn't scream as much. But we did make sure he had enough children's Tylenol and cold rags. Have you tried any medicine?"

I shook my head. "No, but I probably should. He's got a second tooth coming in. Nearly cut me with it."

"Yeah, they're sharp. Why don't we clean a little? I told Em we'd probably be down around one-ish."

It was only eleven so we had a couple hours. "Sure."

She put Brayden in the playpen so he wouldn't get into anything while she helped me pick up around the house. I vacuumed and dusted the best that I could, cleaned out the diaper bag, took out the trash. With Shelby's help, it didn't take long at all until my house looked halfway decent.

"Thanks for helping. I appreciate it."

"That's what best friends are for. So, tell me, how did Will like Christmas? I think I forgot to ask you that."

I smiled, remembering his face. "I'm just glad he was old enough to be able to react, you know? He loved the lights on the tree. Mom and Dad gave us an ornament engraved with his name and the date, his first Christmas and all that." Chuckling, I shook my head. "He also really liked the bows. We have this cute picture from where Jacob stuck a bow on the top of his head. He was grinning like crazy."

"That's cute. How are you doing? You know, since...? You seem better, more normal."

After shoving the vacuum in the hall closet, I turned to her with a smile. "I feel much better. Jacob and I are...as feisty as ever. He's home on the days that we don't have play dates. I asked him to change his schedule. After years of spending every day with him and then going to just nights and weekends was really hard on me, especially with Will. But we talk all the time. And we're trying to get pregnant. We figure it would be a good time, so that the kids would be a year or so apart. They can grow up together. We're also doing more as a couple as you know, leaving Will with other people to watch. It's good for us. And hunting again feels amazing. What about you? How are you and Seth coming on the second kidlet?"

Her expression closed down, eyes not meeting mine. Instead, she looked at her son. "He's having problems again. Bad nightmares about hurting me and Brayden. Carlisle offered to have sessions with him, thinking that Caden and Calahan are too logical, not emotional enough to understand. Seth has been going to him a couple weeks. It's helping, I think, but he doesn't want to talk about it to me. I think that he thinks I'll look at him differently if I know the details of the dreams." She hugged herself. "Sometimes I wonder if mixing our blood was a mistake. Maybe I should have just left him alone."

Going to her, I hugged her. "Sweetie, you couldn't have known what was going to happen. Not the fact that it brought him back or the aftereffects. Brayden has a father, a father that is doing whatever he has to in order to heal himself. Has Carlisle said what could be wrong with him?"

"Post traumatic stress most likely. Dying in a fight left the imprints of it in his mind. It was the last thing he went through before he died. Carlisle thinks it probably wouldn't be so bad if it had just been an accident of some sort. He also thinks that if Seth were able to get a good night's sleep that it would help him, so he's been working on trying to make a sleeping pill that can help, that will last in his system." She wrapped her arms around me and buried her face in my shoulder.

I rubbed her back. "It's okay. My grandfather will come up with something. Seth will be okay. I promise."

"Carlisle's looking at other cultures for resurrection. Maybe he can find something."

"That is how they found Nahuel." My heart hurt for his aunt. She had to be missing her nephew, the boy she raised as if he were her own. Aunt Alice had spoken to her briefly over the phone after the showdown, but she was still a recluse.

I frowned. Aunt Alice. A psychic. Hmmm.

"What is that?"

"Hm?"

"That sound. What is it?"

Pausing, I listened, thinking she meant the baby monitor. Will was still snoozing apparently. Not a sound.

I looked back at her as she pulled back a little. "What are you talking about?"

Her eyes widened before she put her ear against my chest again. She did this a few more times. I watched her with eyebrows raised as she pulled back, listening, and then pressed her ear back to my body, my hands raised out to my side as I stood still.

"Uh, Shelby. My heartbeat has always been like that. You're just now noticing?"

She shook her head. "I don't want to be an alarmist, but...either you grew a second heart to explain the extra flutter or..."

My eyes widened. "You think...?"

"I don't know if it's too early for a test."

"If it's a baby's heartbeat then that means that I'm more than just a couple weeks, unless it's like Will. Will's heartbeat showed up at around two weeks because of his quick development."

"You don't have any symptoms? No cravings, body aches, nothing?"

I shook my head. "No, nothing."

"When was your last period?"

This was why I loved best friends. I could talk to her about anything. And at the though of having another baby, my heart raced. A baby girl. I knew it as sure as if I knew Jacob was my husband and the father of my son and any future kids.

"Ness?"

I shook my head. "Sorry. Um...my last period? Hold on." Digging my phone out of my pocket, I pulled up my calendar. I'd started keeping track of my monthly visitor ever since Jake and I had started having sex from the get-go. Frowning at the screen, I paged between December and January knowing that I wouldn't forget to plug the information into the app.

"Well?" Shelby asked impatiently.

"December," I whispered. Clearing my throat, I repeated it. "My last period was in December. I never forget to put it in my calendar, not since Jake and I started having sex."

Her green eyes widened. "Two months."

"What?"

She shrugged. "I looked it up. Some doctors determine due dates by calculating from your last period. By that theory, you're two months pregnant. Do you have a test in the house?"

I nodded. "I bought them when we started trying again."

"Welp, I think it's time to take one, honeybunch. Might have a bun in the oven. And another holiday to surprise Jake with." She laughed. "That's funny. The love holiday and you get to tell him you're pregnant with baby number two."

"We don't know for sure."

Giving me a look, she pushed be toward the bathroom. "Well, we will if you go take that test. It's best to take it in the morning, but I'm impatient. You know that."

"I don't have to pee, though," I said, half laughing as she shoved me into the bathroom.

She snapped her fingers. "A tall glass of ice cold water should do it."

"Really?" I said when she rushed off toward the kitchen.

She came back a moment later with a huge glass that was normally reserved for Jacob. Pushing it into my hands, she ordered, "Now chug it. All of it."

Knowing she wouldn't stop glaring at me until I did as she ordered, I started chugging. It took me about five minutes to get the, as promised, ice cold liquid down. My throat was frozen with that pain in the back of my throat that comes from eating ice cream too fast. I handed the glass back to her and we waited for the water to shoot through my system.

It actually didn't take long, probably about twenty minutes. But during that time, my mind was racing. Pregnant again. Excited didn't begin to cover it. I wanted another baby, wanted Will to have a sister. Let's face it, I was going by my dream as much as Jake was. My next baby was going to be a girl; I could feel it. Jacob would be thrilled. It seemed like he was ready for a second baby from the way he made love to me, going as deep as he could when he released, trying to get his seed as far inside me as he could.

Closing the door on Shelby, I did my thing and set the timer on my phone after washing my hands. Shelby practically took the door off its hinges when I told her she could come in. With Will, these three minutes had been the longest of my life, but this time, it flashed by, showing up with a plus sign.

Shelby squealed, her aversion to babies and motherhood left in the past, while I stood there in pleasant shock, a slow smile curling my lips.

Shelby shook me. "Nessie, you're having another baby! Oh my god, how did you beat me?!"

Laughing, I hugged her. "I'm not going to wait to tell him. I can't."

"You have to! Tell him on your little romantic leave. And then come home and show me his reaction. Please?"

"Two days! I have to wait two days!"

"You can do it! I have faith in you."

Grabbing her shoulders to still her, I gave her a very serious look. "Okay, okay. I won't say anything to him, _but_ you have to promise not to say anything. I don't want the pack knowing before he does. That's not fair since he's the father."

She rolled her eyes. "Well, duh. I know how to keep my mouth shut."

In the kitchen, I heard the baby monitor start wailing. Shelby checked my phone for the time.

"Just in time. We gotta go down to Emily's."

"Right."

While Shelby went to check on Brayden, I went down to the nursery. Jacob and I still hadn't tried putting Will in the upstairs nursery. But it looked like we'd have to with another baby on the way. It still surprised me that I didn't know. Two months pregnant. That meant that next month we could see if it really was a girl. It was stupid, but I felt like the pregnancy was already half over. I'd known almost immediately with Will.

Speaking of, when I got down to him, I found that he'd managed to roll over and sit up on his own. He was wailing at the top of his lungs, eyes still sleepy. I could see his teeth gleam in the faint light of the nightlight. When he finally calmed enough to open his eyes, he calmed even further when he saw me.

"Good afternoon, my little prince." I couldn't help the baby talk even though Carlisle told me it wouldn't help him in the long run. He hiccuped and gurgled when I picked him up. His hands went to his mouth, pulling at his lips. "Oh, I know, little man. You're hurting. We'll give you something to help that, I promise."

When his teeth had started coming in, I'd completely stopped breastfeeding him. Purely bottle fed with pumped breast milk. It hurt too bad when he'd bite down. We'd also started introducing him to sippy cups and bananas. Jacob was always amused when Will would suck on his fingers long after the food was gone. He definitely didn't like mangoes though. He always made funny faces and spit them out.

Before I changed him, I put together his diaper bag and made sure to grab his stuffed wolf. It was his favorite toy, and it looked just like his father. After the bag was ready, I brushed his teeth gently and changed him. Carlisle had given me a numbing gel to spread thinly over his gums that would help.

On the counter beside me, Shelby dropped a bottle of medicine. Brayden was squirming in her arms, pulling at her lips. "Children's Tylenol in liquid form. Half a teaspoon. That's what Carlisle told me when Brayden was that age. I have another bottle at home. You can have that one."

"Thanks."

Will didn't like it. He made a face but didn't spit it out, probably because it was new to him. He'd probably try next time. Once I brushed his black hair with its highlights of copper and auburn, we all trudged out of the house and down to the rez. Brayden was still progressing fast physically and mentally. He could could walk well and loved to play in the leaves, digging through them for sticks and rocks. He could talk, but the only thing that made any sense was when he called Shelby mama. The rest was just babble.

Eventually we made it to Emily's. She'd made lunch for us. Rachel was four months pregnant now and definitely showing. She was having a baby girl. Shelby had elbowed me gently. I'd poked her in return. Seemed like we were all trying to have girls now. Both Emily and Rachel knew something was up. They kept asking me if I was okay and telling me that I looked really happy.

And I was. While they talked, my hands kept finding my stomach, drawing little circles. Two months along and no morning sickness, no cravings. It was almost hard to believe. So much different than with Will, who had made me sick almost immediately.

At around four-thirty, Shelby walked home with me. Will was passed out in my arms after having been worn out by Haleigh. She loved him, and he was pretty fond of her.

I had just enough time to get him settled, make dinner, and get rid of the pregnancy test before Jacob got home.

Friday just couldn't come fast enough.

**Saturday**

**JPOV**

I'd never done anything like this in my life. The hotel room was a wedding suite and gorgeous, according to Nessie. It was done in reds and yellows, which was perfect for her. Vibrant, alive, beautiful.

Last night had been as perfect as I had imagined it. Cliche romantic with the rose petals, but done in orange to compliment the red and yellow of the room. I was convinced that we needed a jacuzzi tub installed in our house. To use Nessie's word, it had been divine. The bed was orgy-size and so plush the blankets and pillows had fluffed up around us, creating a cocoon of our own little world.

The love-making was slow and deliberate. No claws. No blood. Gentle, savoring. We'd pleasured each other until the sun had come up, taking breaks to play in the chocolate fondu and eat strawberries from a silver tray. She'd gotten me to chase her around the room by smearing chocolate on my chest, and I'd told her she had to clean it off. She'd refused playfully and took off. We'd ended up on the floor, her underneath me. Everything I'd ever wanted for her in one night.

It had been perfect.

Now, I opened my eyes to early afternoon sunlight and an empty bed. Going up on my elbows, I found Nessie in a royal purple robe, her hair shining brightly against the darker fabric. Her eyes were closed as she basked in the afternoon sunlight streaming in from a tall window.

"You're up early," I said.

She smiled, but didn't open her eyes. "I'm just excited."

This time, I went with the dirty thought. "Well, I can certainly take care of that. Pretty sure _I _owned _you_ last night."

The smile turned to a grin. "Mmmm, I don't mean that kind of excited, though I know you could certainly take care of that."

Sitting up, I pulled my knees up and rested my forearms on them. "Then what are you excited about?"

That was what she'd been waiting for. Opening her eyes, she came to the bed and crawled through the heavy comforter and satin sheets. Sitting on her knees beside me, she smiled and bit her lower lip before holding her hand out to me.

"I want to show you."

Quirking an eyebrow, I took her hand in mine.

Immediately, images flashed across my vision. Instinctively, I closed my eyes so that I could see them clearly. She was so excited that she couldn't quite get her thoughts to calm, so I put her hand on my chest and exaggerated deep breaths. After a moment, she followed my example and things started to calm and slow.

_Sorry_, she thought at me.

And then she stopped my heart with the next image.

A positive pregnancy test.

After that, the same little girl that had been in her dreams. A little girl with bronze curls and gold skin, not quite as dark as mine or Will's, and eyes the color of bright green sea glass.

Snapping my eyes open with the image of the girl superimposed over over everything, I stared at Nessie.

She stopped the vision and smiled at me.

"We're pregnant again?"

She nodded. "Yeah. If Shelby hadn't heard the heartbeat, I wouldn't have ever known."

"What do you mean?" I asked breathlessly.

"She hugged me and heard the heartbeat. If our calculations are right, I'm about two months pregnant, but I don't have any symptoms like I did with Will."

A little girl. And I was going to be a dad twice. A dad. Holy shit, it just didn't stop amazing me to think that.

Her grin shined brighter than the afternoon sunlight as if she knew what I was thinking.

"Jacob, we're having another baby."

Moving so fast even I didn't remember it, I pulled her lips to mine and gently pulled her on top of me.

**The End**

**Stay tuned for more of the cute Black family with baby Will and his sister Jules! More Jacob and Will time to come! Promise!**

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><p><strong>*Clears throat* I think you all know what to do! Please Review. Yes, short, but I felt it was effective. I love Jacob and cannot wait to see him with his baby girl! The next one won't be as many chapters. Hopefully, I'll concentrate more on after the birth. And I know all of you are doing math, thinking that Nessie got pregnant with Will around the same time. Breathe. I got this covered. I love each and every one of my fans. Y'all are amazing. And yes, I'm southern. I say things like "y'all"! xoxoxoxoxoxo<strong>


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